Arrow and Shadow
by Sanura Bey
Summary: Oliver wasn't alone on the island. Ashlee Merlyn, twin sister to Tommy, was shipwrecked on the island with Oliver when the Queen's Gambit sank. Now she's back to save her city from the poison that plagues Starling. No one ever said it would be easy.
1. Home

Running. That's all we'd seemed to be doing for the last five years is running. But this time we were running to safety instead of running from danger. I followed the man who hadn't left my side in all that time up a cliff to see a fishermen's boat not far from shore. We jumped over more rocks and ran over more ground to a small site we'd made camp at not long ago. I jammed a knife into a space between two rocks as he prepared his bow and arrow. He grabbed an arrow and used the knife to lite the tip on fire before setting the weapon. He fired and hit the burn pile we'd built, creating an explosion so the fishermen would find us. We waited until the fishermen arrived on the rocky shore before stepping out so they could find us. Once they got us onto their ship they offered us both water before continuing to China. The name of the island they found us on is Lian Yu. It's Mandarin for "purgatory". We've dreamt of our rescue every cold black night since then. For 5 years, we have had only one thought, one goal... survive. Survive and one day return home. The island held many dangers. To live, we had to make ourselves more than what we were, to forge ourselves into a weapon. We are returning not the children who were shipwrecked but the man and woman who will bring justice to those who have poisoned our city. My name is Ashlee Merlyn and my constant and only companion for the past five years is Oliver Queen.

* * *

They ran all sorts of tests in China before sending us back home to Sterling City where they did the same test for the same results. The only difference between home and China was the pampering that was sent to my room before my father arrived. A hairstylist shampoo and conditioned my hair to death before cutting it to where the tips would fall to the top of my waist. My hair wouldn't be straightened for a while though since I wouldn't touch a straightener unless needed for our plans. A manicurist fixed my nails and painted them my former color of choice, red, as well as my toes. It was like a spa day at the hospital for a while before someone came in with a dress that would have been very much my style five years ago until they saw the scars on my legs that showed from the bottom of the short dress and where my cleavage showed. Finally, we decided on a red skirt that was solid until it hit mid-thigh then went sheer slightly lower. I wore a white tank with a red off the shoulder top and white heels. I wore white pearl earrings, red bracelet, and two rings on my fingers; one white and one red. On the hospital bed was a red coach purse with a gold chain so I could carry it on my shoulder. It took me a while to remember how to walk in heels after so long, but it was like riding a bike. The outfit showed my toned arms and legs that had been left un-scared. They had put red lipstick on me, red eyeshadow, black eyeliner in cat-eye style and mascara framed my clear blue eyes, and rouge on my cheeks. I felt strange, being in my old clothes, my old life didn't seem to fit my new body. I stood staring out the window aware of my father and doctor outside my door talking. I wondered what Oliver was doing right now as I stared out into the city.

"Over 15% of her body is covered in scar tissue. Second-degree burns scars on her back, front and arms. X-rays show many fractures that never properly healed. There's possibly physiological damage as well as a bond between both her and Oliver Queen. She and Oliver were almost inseparable when they came in from China." The Doctor told Malcolm Merlyn as they both watched the young woman put her hand on the glass in front of her. Malcolm looked at the pictures they took of his daughter's injuries.

"Have either of them said anything about what happened to them?" Malcolm asked his daughter's doctor.

"No. The only words out of their mouths were when they were screaming at us when we separated them. As you can see they've calmed considerably." the doctor told him. "Malcolm, I have to warn you. The daughter you lost might not be who they found on that island." Malcolm just looked back at the doctor before walking into the room and to his daughter before either of them spoke.

"Ashlee." I turned from the view of the city to my father.

"Dad," I said with a small smile. He pulled me to him and hugged me tightly, as though he was refusing to ever let me go again.

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." He whispered to me.

"I'm okay, Dad, really. Oliver and I looked out for each other." I told him, my smile growing. I saw him frown. "What?"

"I don't want you anywhere near the Queen family." He told me.

"Dad, that's not happening," I told him plainly.

"For once you will do as you're told." He demanded and I shook my head at him.

"I'm past the age eighteen, Dad, legal adult. I've been gone for five years and the only reason I am alive right now is because of the man you want to separate me from." I told him. "If there's one person who I will probably always be looking for in a room, it's him. If there's one person who I will look to for comfort, it will be him." I left the room, grabbing my purse from the bed and went the next room over to see Oliver hugging his mother. At least his welcome home was going far better than mine. He looked up at the door and smiled at me which I returned and waved before walking away to my father at the end of the hall.

"Ready to go home?" he asked me and I nodded. We stepped out of the hospital and were immediately surrounded by the press throwing questions left and right.

"Miss Merlyn, what happened to you on that island?"

"Miss Merlyn, what happened on the Queen's Gambit?"

"Miss Merlyn, are you and Oliver Queen an item now?" These were the only questions I could hear clearly. Why would they be concerned about my love life; priorities of the press at its finest. The driver my father had opened the door for us and we quickly got inside as the press continued to snap pictures and ask questions.

"You know, I have the same questions they do." My dad told me.

"I figured," I said looking out of the window to watch the city pass us by.

"Are you going to tell me the answers?" he asked.

"Dad, one day you'll get all the answers to all the questions you want to ask me. For now, the only one I will answer is if Oliver and I are a thing: no. Oliver is still in love with Laural Lance, not me." I told him. I watched his reaction in the window as he watched me. Nothing, either he didn't believe me or his poker face was better than I thought growing up. When we got home the driver got out and opened the door for us and I immediately went to the trunk and pulled out the wooden suitcase that almost matched Oliver's.

"Why don't you let the driver get that?" my dad asked me.

"I can get it," I told him with a smile before we walked inside the house. I looked around and nothing had changed.

"I left your rooms the same way they were before you…" he dropped his sentence and I kissed his cheek.

"Thank you," I whispered before going up to my bedroom. Everything was the same. That's they my dad grieved me, I guess. After 5 years, everything that was once familiar was unrecognizable; from the clothes in the closet to the color on the walls. The face I saw in the mirror was a stranger.I put the case under my bed and made sure the locks were secure before leaving my room and going back downstairs to see my twin brother.

"Tommy," I said smiling at him. He walked to me and gave me a tight hug. "I feel like a nice dinner. What are you doing tonight?"

"I'm going to the Queen Mansion for dinner." He told me slowly and my smile grew.

"Then why are we keeping the Queen family waiting?" I asked him. We went out to his car and drove to the Queen Mansion.

"Ash, we didn't you tell anyone you were going with Oliver on the Queen's Gambit?" he asked me suddenly.

"I wasn't going with Oliver, Tommy. Robert asked me to come with them for business. He told me he was going to offer me Queen Consolidated if Oliver didn't straighten his act up." I told him.

* * *

I moved from my cabin to the hallway to see Mr. Queen and Ollie talking.

"What's going on?" I asked them over the thunderstorm.

"Nothing, Ash. What's up?" Ollie asked me.

"Nothing, just can't sleep through this storm. Mind if I bunk in your room?" I asked him.

"Not at all." He told me with a smile and I turned and went back to his room.

* * *

We walked into the Queen Mansion and I smiled at seeing Oliver. He'd been my stability for five years and he was really the only recognizable thing in this city.

"What did I tell you? Yachts suck." Tommy told his best friend. Oliver turned to us and smiled at me before moving his eyes to my brother.

"Tommy Merlyn," Oliver said hugging him.

"I missed you, buddy," Tommy said finally releasing him.

"How are you doing Ashlee?" Oliver asked giving me a hug. I sighed at his familiar warmth and the strength of his arms around me.

"Probably as good as you," I told him with a smile. We all walked to the dining room with his arm still around my shoulders. We all sat at the table, Walter Steele sat next to his mother, Thea sat across from me and I sat between both boys.

"Ok. What else did you miss? Super Bowl winners... Giants, Steelers, Saints, Packers, Giants again. A black president, that's new. Oh, and "Lost," they were all dead...I think." Tommy told us as Oliver and I held hands under the table. Neither Oliver nor I had eaten much on our plates.

"What was it like there?" Thea asked us and the table went silent and you could cut the tension with a knife.

"Cold," Oliver told her with a small smile as I looked down at my full plate.

"Tomorrow, the three of us, we're doing the city. You've got a lot to catch up on." Tommy told us and I smiled at him.

"That sounds like a great idea," Moira said with a smile on her face looking at us.

"Good. Then I was hoping to swing by the office." Oliver said smiling at his mother and Walter and I gave him a small unnoticeable look except to him. Walter was about to take a sip of his wine but stopped looking to Oliver.

"Well, there's plenty of time for all that. Queen Consolidated isn't going anywhere." Walter told him with a smile. I watched the interaction between Walter and Moira for a moment before looking back at my plate taking what I'd seen in. Raisa came to set a bowl of pears on the table when she tripped between Oliver and I. I caught the bowl as Oliver caught her and restored her balance.

"Oh, I am so sorry, Mr. Oliver, Miss Merlyn.

"Eto ne bespokoystvo. (It's no worry)." Oliver told her in Russian.

"My oba prosto rad, chto ne sdelal bol'no. (We're both just glad you didn't get hurt.)" I told her in the same language. Everyone looked at us stunned.

"You two speak Russian?" Tommy asked us.

"I didn't realize either of you took Russian at college," Walter told us.

"I wanted to make sure I was prepared for anything when I went to school," I told them with a smile.

"And I didn't realize you wanted to sleep with my mother, Walter," Oliver said and another silence filled the room and the tension returned. Moira looked at Oliver then at Thea.

"I didn't say anything," Thea told her mother.

"She didn't have to," Oliver told her meaning he had seen the same thing I had and Moira nodded in acknowledgment.

"Oliver...Walter and I are married, and I don't want you to think that either one of us did anything to disrespect your father," Moira told him.

"We both believed that Robert, like the two of you, was, uh, well, gone," Walter told him. I watched Oliver and saw he was visibly pained and I tightened my grip on his hand.

"It's fine." He said releasing my hand and standing up. "May I be excused?" Moira nodded and Oliver smiled at everyone.

"Moira, do you mind if I stay for the night? I'm not sure how I feel about being on my own and Oliver has been such a stability in my life on the island." I told her and she nodded with a smile on her face. "Thank you. If you'll excuse me."

"Hey, don't forget about tomorrow," Tommy said as Oliver and I left the room.

"Oliver." I stopped him walking away from me and put my hands in his. "We knew things would be different when we came back." I reminded him.

"Not this different." He told me.

"We are different so why wouldn't they be?" I asked him. He took a few moments to breathe and I gave him a comforting hug which he returned. "We have to be able to accept that everyone in our old lives, they're different now. We're different so why wouldn't they be?"

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't be acting this way." He told me and I smiled up at him.

"We're still human, Oliver. We all react to things that are close to us. Come on; let's get to your room." He kept his arm around my shoulder and my arm around his waist as we walked up to his room together unaware of the eyes watching us from the dining room. We got up to his room and I stole a white muscle shirt and shorts from his dresser and started took off my red top. There wasn't a lot of privacy on the island so we'd seen a lot of each other's bodies.

"We're back home now. You could use the bathroom." Oliver told me and I turned and gave him a look.

"It's nothing you haven't seen on me before," I said as I slid my shoes off my feet and took off my skirt and tank leaving me in my undergarments revealing my scars. I felt fingers trace over one of them and I closed my eyes at the comfort it offered. I moved away from him and removed my bra before pulling his shirt and shorts. I watched as a storm rolled in before felling Oliver wrap his arms around my shoulders and waist and placing his head on top of mine.

"You going to be okay?" he asked me.

"Yes, just don't know how I really feel to be back," I admitted.

"Your dad?" he asked, knowing that he was the one person I'd dreaded to see.

"He told me I was going to be staying away from your family." I laughed lightly.

"Well, that worked out well for him." He joked. "Come on, let's get some sleep." He opened the window and laid down on the floor where I joined him. Our beds were like a taboo area right now since we had grown accustomed to the rocks as our beds. I was still awake when it started to rain on us. That and Oliver's heartbeat was the music that put me to sleep.

* * *

Lightening flashed as I sat on Oliver's bed and waited for the following sound.

"I think it's getting closer," I told him.

"And why do you think that?" he asked bringing me some wine.

"The time between the lightning and the time we can hear thunder," I said.

"That's not been proven to be a scientific way of finding that information out." He told me and I gave him a look.

"Says the boy who dropped out of four Ivy league schools." I laughed.

"I did manage to retain some things." He said as I put my wine glass down.

"Oh really? Like what?" I asked him.

"The exact spot you're ticklish." He said before he started to tickle me, making me fall back onto his bed.

"No! Stop!" I couldn't help laughing before we watched the champagne and wine glasses tilt. Suddenly the cabin flipped and we were thrown to the other side of the room. "Ollie!" I screamed and he quickly grabbed my arm before the ocean could rip me away from him.

"Ash!" he called to me and I forced myself up closer to him before we were both pulled from the Gambit and into the ocean. Still holding each other's hands we managed to swim to the surface before someone pulled us into a raft.

We turned and watched as the yacht sank to the bottom of the ocean, holding onto each other.

"Are you both okay?" Mr. Queen asked us. I simply nodded as Oliver and I tried to get comfortable next to each other, refusing to let go of the other. "Don't let her go, son. Never let her go."

* * *

"Oliver? Wake up. Oliver?" I woke to someone behind me moving quickly and grabbed Oliver's hand before he could hit Moira's throat and kill her.

"Oliver!" Walter called to him to try and wake him fully.

"Oliver, wake up. Rúguǒ jìxù xiàqù, nǐ yào shārén.(If you keep going you're going to kill someone.)" I told him. Oliver looked up at me then to Walter then down at Moira. He quickly released her and released her and held my hand tightly as I hugged him.

"I'm sorry. I'm so... I'm so sorry." Oliver said as Walter helped Moira up.

"Oh, it's ok, Oliver. It's all right, sweetheart. You're home. You're home." Moira told him.

"She's okay Oliver," I whispered to him while rubbing my hand in circular motions on his back.

* * *

The next morning, I was in the guest room that I'd always used when Tommy and I had stayed over digging through all the clothes I'd left five years ago. I sighed and pulled out random clothes that would cover the scars on my body yet still look nice. I wore an eggshell white shirt with black lining on the sleeves and the ruffles that would hide any scars on my chest, blue jeans, light gray jacket, and eggshell white heels that had jewels on the heel and down the spike. I wore a gold chunky bracelet, a gold ring with gems on it and diamond dangle earrings. I looked at myself in the mirror and applied light makeup on my face and sighed.

"Hey." I looked and saw Oliver standing behind me.

"I feel heavy. Like something's weighing me down. Could be the diamonds on my ears." I joked with him and he smiled.

"You look beautiful." He told me and I smiled.

"I look like a girl. Big difference." I corrected him. He walked up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist. I leaned into his form and stared at us in the mirror.

"You've always looked like a girl, Ashlee. The island didn't have the latest fashions, but you were always beautiful to me." He said and I smiled at him.

"Thank you," I said before turning in his arms and hugging him tightly. It felt right, to be in his arms. I'd always cared for Oliver before the island, loved him even, and while there I fell in love with him even more. But he was in love with Laurel. Always had been, always will be.

"Tommy's here." He said smiling down at me before we walked out of the room together.

* * *

Tommy had decided that was the day to drive his Mercedes which meant that I had to sit in Oliver's lap for the trip around town. We'd down this before so it wasn't really anything new, but with how I felt about him this wasn't a fun ride.

"Your funerals blew," Tommy told us.

"Did you get lucky?" Oliver asked him and I laughed lightly.

"Fish in a barrel. They were so sad..." he told us.

"No." I translated.

"And huggy." He told us. "And I am counting on another target rich environment for your welcome home bash."

"At our what?" Oliver and I asked him.

"You two came back from the dead. This calls for a party. You guys tell me where and when. I'll take care of everything. And this city's gone to crap. Your dad sold his factory just in time. And why'd you want to drive through this neighborhood anyway?" Tommy asked as Oliver and I looked out the window to see his father's old steel factory.

"No reason," Oliver told him.

"So what'd you miss the most, steaks at the palm, drinks at the station, meaningless sex?" Tommy asked him.

"I want to see Laurel," Oliver said and I looked down at my hands in pain.

"Everyone is happy you're alive. You want to see the one person who isn't?" Tommy asked him.

"Let's just go and see her, Tommy," I told him.

* * *

Tommy and I watched Laurel and Oliver talk before she walked over to us. I kept my head down so I'd be staring at the ground as she walked by us.

"How did you think that was gonna go, Tommy?" she asked as she walked away from Oliver and us.

"About like that," Tommy told her. We walked back to his car in the alleyway. "Ok, so we took care of that. Good call. Now we can make up for lost time. If you're not too sick of fish, I suggest we find some leggy models and eat Sushi all day. What do you say?"

"No leggy model for me please." I joked with him before a van approached us from behind.

"What're they doing?" Tommy asked as three armed men in masks appeared in front of us. "What the hell?"

"Hey!" a bystander shouted before one of the men shot him dead. Someone shot Tommy's neck and then shot both Oliver and I. I took out the thing that was sticking out of my neck and saw a tranquilizer in my hand.

* * *

We were in the lifeboat for what felt like days with a fluorescent light above the boat.

"Here, son. Drink. Share it with Ash." Robert said and I looked up from Oliver's chest to see him drinking something.

"What the hell are you doing?!" the second man from the ship said pointing to the bottle Oliver had. "That's all we've got."

"If anybody's making it out of here, it's gonna be them," Robert said as Oliver handed me the bottle. "I'm so sorry. I thought I'd have more time. I'm not the man you think I am. I didn't build our city. I failed it. And I wasn't the only one."

* * *

"Mr. Queen. Miss Merlyn." A hood was yanked off my head and I blinked in the surprise of light on my face. I was zip-tied to a chair with Oliver sitting across from me in the same position. I moved my hands around trying to get the restraint off me. "Mr. Queen! Did your father survive that accident?" Oliver looked at me and I nodded my head slightly. "I ask the questions. You give me the answers or she gets hurt." The man in the mask warned before tasering me. "Did he make it to the island? Did he tell you anything?" he tased me again and I rolled my eyes.

"Yes, he did," Oliver told him calmly.

"What did he tell you, Mr. Queen?" the man asked.

"He told me we're gonna kill you," Oliver told him.

"You're delusional. You're both zip-cuffed to that chair." The man laughed and I smiled.

"Not anymore," Oliver said showing his untied hands as I got mine out of the restraint they had been in. The first kidnapper attacked Oliver who dodged his attack by lifting his chair like a shield before breaking his neck with it. The second attacker went to attack him and I kicked his legs out from under him. Before he could get up I put my heel on his neck and watched the third kidnapper run away with Oliver behind him.

"You don't have to do this." The man told me and I looked down at the man. "Please."

"You shouldn't have kidnapped," I said before breaking his neck, killing him.

* * *

I sat between Oliver and Tommy with Tommy's arm around my shoulders and Oliver's hand in mine at the Queen's living room with the cops asking us questions about our kidnapping.

"So that's your story. A guy in a green hood and a woman in black flew in and took out 3 armed kidnappers. I mean, who are they? Why would they do that?" Detective Lance asked us.

"I don't know. Find them and you can ask." Oliver told him.

"Yeah. What about you two?" Detective Lance asked me and Tommy. "You see the hood guy and dominatrix?"

"I saw..." I looked at Tommy and waited to hear what he was going to say. "Just movement. Everything blurry. I was kind of out of it."

"I didn't see anything. They kept a hood over my head and tased me after asking Oliver questions." I told them as Tommy pulled me closer to his side.

"Yeah. It's funny, isn't it? One day back, and already somebody's gunning for the two of you. Aren't you two popular?" he asked us.

"Were you able to identify the men?" Moira asked as we heard the door open and my dad came into the living room.

"Scrubbed identities, untraceable weapons. These were pros." Detective Hilton told her.

"Ashlee, Tommy, are the two of you okay?" he asked coming to our sides.

"Hey Dad, we're fine," I told him hugging him.

"Yeah. Well, they probably figured you two'd pay a king's ransom to get your boy back or a Queen's ransom, as it were. After all, a parent would do anything to keep their child safe." Detective Lance told us.

"I don't find your tone appropriate, Detective," Moira told him as I saw my dad turn and glare at him.

"If Oliver, Ashlee, and Tommy can think of anything else, they'll be in touch. Thank you, gentlemen, for coming." Walter told them and Detective Lance chuckled.

"Your luck never seems to run out, does it?" he asked us before leaving. I looked down at Oliver as my dad held me closer to him. I knew why Detective Lance was angry with us, Laurel. Isn't it funny how one woman can be in the center of everything?

* * *

Once we got home dad made sure I was resting in my room with a book and didn't have to get up for any reason except to use the bathroom.

"Dad, I told you already. I'm fine." I told him.

"This is the second time I nearly lost you when you were with Oliver Queen. This is the last time you spend any time with him." He ordered and I rolled my eyes.

"You know you can't really stop me, right?" I asked him. "I'm an adult and I could move out anytime I like. Stop ordering me around."

"I'm your father. I get to order you around." He told me.

"And I'm your daughter. I get to disobey." I told him. "Besides, you're not my jailer or my commander."

"I forgot how much fun you were at home." He said sarcastically and I smiled at him as he left my room.

* * *

The next morning I waited for Oliver at the steel factory we'd decided to use as a hideout for our plans to save the city. When he walked to me I smiled at him.

"You're late," I told him.

"My mother wants me to have a bodyguard." He told me.

"Well, my father wants me to stay away from you," I told him as we threw our bags over and scaled the fence. The abduction was unexpected. It forced us to move up our plans, but what we told the police was true. The man in the green hood and the woman in black were there in that warehouse, and they were just beginning. We entered the abandoned factory and opened up a way into the subbasement and lowered the items we needed to do what was needed. We opened up the area so it was just one large floor plan before setting things up and getting some power going. We made sure everything was ready and working before he sat down and sharpened his arrows and I prepared my outfit and weapons. My outfit was black leather pants, black leather knee high boots, black gloves, a black mask, and a black leather long-sleeved top that still showed off some cleavage. I just couldn't seem to find anything that didn't know and days. Luckily the top would still hide the scars so if anyone did see me they couldn't identify me with them. After everything was set up we began training. He grabbed a steel pole and used it and two poles, that looked like they would have held up shelves or something, and climbed up using only his dead weight and muscle. I climbed anything I could find, bending my body differently so I could make it to the ceiling and back down repeatedly. We both had placed our wooden chests here versus keeping them at home. Anyone could find them there but here they would be safe and hidden. In his, was his bow and in mine was an assortment of blades. I had throwing knives that would line my arms and thighs, a small sword that would be sheathed on my back, and two Sais that were sheathed in my boots. I watched as Oliver released tennis balls and shot them all into a wall before I made sure I was still just as sharp with my blades.

"The suit alleges that Hunt committed multiple acts of fraud and theft against the city's underprivileged. Laurel Lance, an attorney for the city necessary…" the news was saying. Adam Hunt...his crimes went deeper than fraud and theft, but he'd been able to bully, bribe, or kill anyone who'd gotten into his way. He hadn't met us yet. We suited up and prepared our weapons before leaving for work.

* * *

We watched Adam Hunt walk in a parking lot with three men, talking about the upcoming case.

"You remind Grell I put him on the bench, I can take him off. I will turn him into a cautionary tale." Hunt told his men.

"Yes, Mr. Hunt." One man said.

"And this attorney Laurel Lance...you said she wasn't gonna be a problem anymore. I told you to fix that situation." They all stopped walking for a moment. "Why are you still here?" The man quickly left and they continued walking. I nodded to Oliver who shot an arrow at the lights and made them go out where we needed them to. I threw one of my knives at the bodyguards and hit one, killing him.

"Get in the car!" the second man said to Hunt. Once hunt was in the car he fired his gun up at the ceiling where he thought we were.

"Hey. You missed." Oliver called to him. Oliver shot an arrow as I threw a knife at him killing him. He fired another arrow at the car and the broke the glass next to Hunt. I walked to the car and yanked him out of it before throwing him to the ground. He looked up at us and saw Oliver pointing an arrow at him as I pulled out my Sais.

"What? What? Just... just tell me what you want." Hunt told us. Oliver jumped off the hood of the car and picked up Hunt by the collar of his shirt.

"You're gonna transfer $40 million into Starling City bank account 1141 by 10 P.M. tomorrow night," Oliver told him.

"Or what?" Hunt asked him.

"Or we're gonna take it, and you won't like how" Oliver warned him and we walked away from him.

"If I see you again, you're dead!" Hunt told us. I turned and threw a knife at him, scratching his cheek, as Oliver fired an arrow into his car once more, allowing us to both disappear from his sight.

* * *

The next night I wore a short dress that was pink on the bust while the waist down was black. The heels were white with black lace covering them; I also wore two rings, one black and one pink, and a necklace that I wrapped around my neck twice before letting it rest on my skin. My hair was half up and let the rest fall naturally. I'd used makeup to hide the scars to the best of my ability before meeting Tommy downstairs and leaving the house for the party. Once we were at the party all we had to do was wait for Oliver to show up and Tommy would make a big deal. I checked my phone and saw it was 9:07. Adam Hunt only had fifty-three minutes left before Oliver and I needed to make him do what we wanted. I looked up and saw Oliver walking down the stairs with his phone out to see the time just as I did. I nudged Tommy and he grabbed my hand before taking me up to Oliver.

"Everybody, hey!" Tommy called out as the music died down. "Man-and-woman-of-the-hour!" the crowd cheered at seeing us. "Whoo! And, ladies, please give this man a proper homecoming. Guys, stay away from my sister." He said making me laugh. Music played as Oliver and I approached and climbed onto the center of the stage together.

"Thank you very much, everybody!" Oliver shouted to the crowd.

"Ollie, Ollie, Ollie, Ollie. For you and Ash." Tommy gave Oliver two shots and Oliver gave one of them to me and we downed them.

"We missed Tequila!" he shouted and the crowd cheered again.

"Keep the music going!" I shouted as Oliver got down from the stage then helped me down. As we partied Oliver stayed by my side even as everyone came up to us and wanted to dance or just talk. I looked past Oliver to see a black man staring at him.

"Is that the bodyguard your mother wanted you to have?" I asked him.

"Yeah, what do you think?" he asked me.

"Looks like he takes his job very seriously," I told him.

"Hey. Does he wipe for you, too?" Tommy asked joining in our conversation. "Now by my rough estimate, you have not had sex in 1,839 days. As your wingman, I highly recommend Carmen Golden. And for you, dear sister, no one."

"Thanks, Tommy," I said sarcastically.

"Which one is Carmen Golden?" Oliver asked Tommy.

"The one who looks like the chick from "Twilight."" Tommy said and I looked at him confused.

"What's "Twilight"?" Oliver and I asked him.

"You're so better off not knowing," Tommy told us. I smiled at him before seeing Oliver staring intently somewhere. I turned and saw Thea getting drugs from a guy and sighed.

"Back in a minute," Oliver told us before he walked to his sister and pulled her aside from her friends.

"This isn't going to be pretty," I said. Tommy gave me a curious look before following my gaze to Oliver and his sister.

"I'm so glad that was never you." He told me and I laughed at him.

"That wasn't me cause you were right next to me doing the same drugs I was." I reminded him and he laughed before nodding.

"That's right, how could I forget that?" he asked me.

"Well, we were high most of the time with Oliver next to us," I said and he nodded. "So, who are you dating now?"

"No one." He told me.

"Still opting for the one nighters verses a real relationship?" I asked him.

"I actually have a girl I'm interested in, but she has this ex who she's still in love with and he still loves her." He told me and I nodded.

"You should fight for her. If you really care about her then you gotta fight Tommy." I told him. "You might lose her if you don't."

"Thanks for that." He told me while giving me a hug.

"I just want my brother to be happy," I told him before looking up and watching Oliver throw something away as he walked back to us and I smiled lightly. Then he bumped into Laurel and my smile faded slightly.

"Oh! Oh. You're here." I heard him say.

"Tommy. He made the point that we have too many years between us to leave things the way we left them. Is there someplace quieter that we could go?" Laurel asked him.

"Yeah." He said before they both left the party area. I looked at Tommy and watched him watch them leave.

"Laurel. She's the girl you're interested in." I said and he turned to me with a sheepish smile.

"That obvious?" he asked me.

"Only to someone who's used to seeing that look on their own face," I told him with a smile.

"So, who does my baby sister like?" he asked me throwing his arm over my shoulder.

"You are only older by five minutes so don't give me that "baby sister" crap." I laughed hitting his arm.

"That still makes me older." He told me.

"If you're older then you get away with nothing and I get away with everything." I laughed.

"You do get away with everything." He said and I laughed again.

"Hey, whatever happened to Sarah?" I asked him as my cell vibrated. I looked at it and saw it was 10. I swiped the screen to the account and saw nothing in it.

"She went to school and never came back. Her mom then up and left her dad leaving Laurel and Detective Lance alone." He told me.

"Hey I gotta go, I'll be right back," I told him before meeting Oliver in the service hallway and walking to our destination.

"Something I can help you with, sir?" I turned and saw Oliver's bodyguard Diggle behind us.

"We just wanted a second to ourselves," Oliver told him putting his arm around my waist as I put my arm around his.

"I would believe you, Mr. Queen, if you weren't so full of crap. Party's this way." Diggle told him motioning to the door and I smirked. I liked this one. Oliver and I walked to the door and he pretended to try and open it.

"It's locked," Oliver told him. Diggle went to check the door and I quickly grabbed him and put him in a sleeper hold and immobilized him. We both waited until he was unconsciousness before going continuing on our way. After we were dressed Oliver aimed an arrow at Hunt Multinational and fired the grappling arrow close to Hunt's office. We made our way over quietly to one of the lower floors and took the elevator up to his office. When the door opened Oliver fired an arrow and I threw a knife at two of the men pointing their guns at us. We came out of the elevator fighting, Oliver using his bow and me throwing punches. I threw a knife at someone who was aiming his gun at Oliver as Oliver used a pillar to jump on a guy's neck and throw him to the ground. Another man fired at us as we hid behind a pillar. I snuck behind him and threw him into the glass door where he was killed by another one of Hunt's men. Oliver shot the man who killed his own guy and I pulled out one of my Sais and hit another man in the neck as Oliver shot an arrow into the wall behind Hunt before arming his bow again.

"You missed," Hunt told him.

"Really?" Oliver asked him. Suddenly a man attacked me and threw my Sai out of my hand and started wailing on me. Out of the corner of my eye, I watched Oliver aim his arrow at the man before I threw both of us to the ground and hit my legs around his neck. He managed to push me away from him and Oliver kicked him back even further. Oliver grabbed the back of the couch and used it as leverage to jump up and grabbed the neck with his legs and threw him to the ground. The man pulled out a knife and I pulled out my other Sai before the man attacked Oliver. Oliver moved out of the way and the man broke a vase and ran into a wall before turning and attacking me. I blocked his knife attack and punched him a few times in the face and gut before he got his knife hand free. He attacked with his knife again ad I grabbed the arm and took his knife before throwing it to the ground. He punched me a few more times before Oliver grabbed his arm and broke it over his knee and threw the man down. At the last minute I saw the gun, but before I could grab it the man did. Oliver and I ran to the desk as he started firing at us. As we jumped over the desk I threw one last knife and killed the guy before we landed and the floor. I looked and saw Oliver unconscious. I crawled to him and hit his face trying to wake him up. Once he did I smiled down at him as he grimaced in pain. He rolled over and picked up a bullet that was next to him.

"Lay down your weapons, or we will open fire!" Oliver grabbed his bow and I grabbed my Sais. "I repeat, lay down your weapons." Oliver shot the light from one of the officers and they started shooting at us as we ran to the window and he held onto my waist as we jumped out, grabbing the wire on the arrow he'd shot earlier. We landed back on the roof of the party and quickly ran to our party clothes and fixed ourselves up again before going down to the party.

"Detective!" Oliver called to Detective Lance as we walked up to where he was talking to Tommy. "It's a private party."

"Yeah? Well, there was an incident at Adam Hunt's building tonight. You know anything about that?" he asked us.

"Who's Adam Hunt?" Oliver asked him.

"He's a millionaire bottom feeder, and I'm kind of surprised you aren't all friends." Detective Lance told him

"We've been out of town for...a while," Oliver said.

"Yeah. Well, he just got attacked by the guy with the hood and the girl in leather who really likes knives, the two that saved your asses the other day." He told us.

"The hood guy and the knife girl. You didn't find him? I'm gonna offer a reward. Hey, everybody. $2 million to anybody that can find a nutbar in a green hood and his girlfriend in black leather." Oliver called out and the crowd cheered before becoming quiet again. Detective Lance was quiet for a moment.

"Did you even think of Laurel before hooking up?" he asked us. "You were her friends and you both betrayed her." His partner quickly pulled him away from us and I looked down at the ground before looking up again to Oliver.

"It's way too quiet in here! This is a party!" Oliver called out and everyone cheered.

"Let's wake this town up!" I shouted taking a shot as the music grew louder again.

"Some coincidence, I mean, you asking to have your party here, and Hunt getting robbed right next door and by the same could who rescued us at the warehouse," Tommy said taking a drink.

"If I were you, Tommy, I'd just be glad you're alive," Oliver told him as he gave me a hug. He knew how much Laurel's friendship had meant to me.

"What-h-happened to you two on that island?" Tommy asked us giving us both a nervous look.

"A lot." We told him.

* * *

On the lifeboat, Oliver still held onto me tightly as his father held him to him.

"There's not enough for all of us. Save your strength. You two can survive this, make it home, make it better, right my wrongs, but you two have got to live through this first. You hear me, Ollie? Ash? You hear me?" he asked us.

"Just rest, dad," Oliver told him before holding me close to him.

"No!" the second man said before a gunshot forced my eyes open in shock.

"Mr. Queen?!" I shouted out.

"Dad?!" Oliver shouted out.

"Survive." His father told us before pointing the gun at his own head.

"No!" Oliver and I shouted before he shot himself in the head.

* * *

The next night Oliver and I had dressed up and I followed him to Laurel's place of business to see her walking with Tommy.

"You left the party pretty quick last night, even after I made sure the bar was stocked with Pinot Noir," Tommy said.

"It wasn't really my scene." She told him.

"I thought maybe you and Oliver went mano-a-mano again. Ash and I saw you two head out." Tommy revealed to her.

"There's nothing between Oliver and me, not anymore." She told him and I grabbed Oliver's hand.

"Here I thought the only thing between you and Oliver was us," Tommy said.

"I wouldn't exactly characterize us as an "us," Tommy." She told him.

"Then what would you call it?" he asked her.

"A lapse." She said.

"That's quite a few lapses... your place, my place, my place again." He listed off and they laughed.

"Oh, come on, Merlyn. We both know that you're not a one-girl type of guy." She told him.

"Depends on the girl." He told her.

"I have to go back to work." She told him.

"Dinah Laurel Lance always trying to save the world." Tommy poked fun at her.

"Hey. If I don't try and save it, who will?" she asked him walking under where we were. There are many more names on the list, those who rule our city through intimidation and fear. Every last one of them will wish we had died on that island.

* * *

Oliver hung his head out on the lifeboat as I cried into my knees.

"Ash, look." I turned and saw an island in the distance.


	2. Honor Thy Father

The day Oliver Queen and I went missing was the day we died. Five years in hell forged us into weapons, which we use to honor a vow we made to his father, who sacrificed his life for ours. In his final moments, he told us the truth that his family's wealth had been built on the suffering of others. That he failed our city, and that it was up to us to save it and right his wrongs. But to do that without endangering the people closest to us, we have to be something else. We have to be something else.

* * *

"Who's that?"

"Where'd they come from?"

"What's going on here?" the men around us questioned as they fired their guns at us. They kept shooting their weapons at us, and we dodged them quickly, either knocking the men out or killing them.

"Get the chopper back now." Our target ordered. Oliver finally pulled an arrow and shot the hand of one of the men guarding the man and knocked another one before firing it behind him. I pulled out one of my throwing knives and killed the last two guards as Oliver made his way to who we were after. "Whoa, whoa! Easy, wait, wait!" Oliver threw Marcus to another, lower, part of the roof with a covered fan and we jumped down to him. Oliver kicked in the fan covering, revealing the fan blades and I pushed Marcus' face close to the blades. "No, please!" he begged.

"Marcus Redman, you failed this city," Oliver told him.

"Please, don't! Please! Don't!" Marcus begged.

"Cell phone, inside pocket, call your partner. Tell him to give those pensioners back their money. Do it now." I ordered him.

"Okay." He agreed. We jumped down from the small platform with the fan and walked away from him, knowing he would do as we said.

* * *

"Over the past 15 years, Mr. Redman has withdrawn more than $30 million from the plan's account. Mr. Redman claims, refunding the halcyon pension plan has always been his intent. But sources say Redman was coerced by the vigilante." I heard over the TV the next day at the Queen Mansion as Oliver, and I walked into the living room. I'd stayed over last night, much to my father's dismay.

"This guy gets more air-time than the Kardashians, right?" Oliver asked his family.

"Five years on an island and you still know who they are," Thea said giving us a confused look.

"We've been catching up," I told her smiling.

"It's nice to see how much our culture has improved while I was away," Oliver said.

"But the city used to be different. People used to feel safe." Mrs. Queen said to us.

"Aw, what's the matter, mom? Afraid we're gonna be next?" Thea asked her mother.

"Do you have any questions about today, Oliver? Ashlee? It's a simple proof-of-life declaration. Just read out a brief, prepared statement to the judge, and then your death-in-absentia judgment will be voided." Walter reminded us.

"It's fine, Walter, I've been in a courtroom before." Oliver reminded him.

"Four times by my estimate. You know, there was the DUI, the assault on that paparazzi douchebag, stealing that taxi, which was just awesome, by the way, and who could forget peeing on the cop?" Tommy listed as he joined us.

"I wish everyone would." Mrs. Queen said as Walter helped her with her coat.

"I'd hang, but we're headed to court," Oliver told him patting his shoulder.

"I know, that's why I'm here. My best friend ad twin sister are getting legally resurrected; I wouldn't miss this for the world." Tommy told us as he patted Oliver's shoulder.

"Right. Okay." Oliver said.

"What about you?" Oliver asked Thea.

"Oh, I think the first four times of you in court was enough for me." She told us walking away.

"Fair enough," Oliver said.

"Mrs. Queen? Car's ready." Diggle told us. As Mrs. Queen passed us, Tommy offered her his arm, and she gave him a look as she and Walter passed.

"Walter," Tommy said as he passed.

"Why weren't you at home last night?" Tommy asked me.

"I stayed here. Why?" I asked.

"Dad called me asking where you were." He told me, and I sighed. He'd called me after Oliver, and I had gotten done with our evening plans, but I ignored him.

* * *

"Are you going to testify as to what happened when the yacht sank?"

"Are you going to talk about the boat crash?" The reporters swarmed us as we walked into the courthouse. My mind flashed back to the storm as I called for Oliver, my hand held out for his.

* * *

"There was a storm. The boat went down. Ashlee and I were the only survivors." Oliver told the judge. "My father didn't make it."

"We almost died, I thought that we had because we spent so many days on that life raft before we saw land," I said. "When we reached it, I knew, we knew that we were gonna have to live for him and us."

"And in those five years, it was that one thought that kept us going," Oliver told them.

"Your honor, we move to vitiate the death-in-absentia filed after Oliver and Ashlee's disappearance at sea aboard the Queen's gamut five years ago. Unfortunately, we will not be requesting that the declaration of death filed for the petitioner's father, Robert Queen, be rescinded. The Queen family is only entitled to one miracle, I'm afraid." The lawyer said.

* * *

After we were legally resurrected, we exited the courtroom and were headed down the stairs, Mrs. Queen started rambling.

"Now, onto the offices. Everyone is waiting to meet you there." She told Oliver.

"Uh, mom, that was a little bit heavier than I was expecting it to be. Ashlee and I wanted to leave and get some air. Can we do that tomorrow? Please?" Oliver asked her.

"Of course." She told him.

"Thank you." She and Walter left the three of us alone.

"Last week, you couldn't wait to get to the company." Tommy pointed out as we made our way down the stairs.

"Tommy, I'd just spent five years away from civilization. I wasn't exactly thinking straight." Oliver pointed out as before we ran into Laurel and two other women.

"I… hi," Oliver said to her.

"What are you doing here?" she asked him.

"Oh, they were bringing us back from the dead. Legally speaking," Oliver told her. "What are you doing here?"

"My job." She told him.

"Right." He agreed.

"More like the D.A.'s." Laurel's friend said, and the young blonde by her side looked down to the floor at her words.

"Hi, Oliver Queen," Oliver said holding his hand out to her.

"Emily Nocenti." She introduced.

"Oliver just got back from five years on an uncharted island. Before that, he was cheating on me with my best friend who now never leaves his side. And last week, he told me to stay away from him. It was really good advice. Excuse me." Laurel told the young woman.

"It was nice to meet you," Emily told him.

"Yeah. Let's go." Laurel's friend told Emily.

"Come on, buddy, shake it off. Let's go." Tommy said, and we left the building only to see the press surrounding a man who's named Oliver, and I knew well.

"Mr. Somers! Mr. Somers! What do you have to say about the accusations made by Laurel Lance?" The reporters asked him.

"I don't know what I've done to earn this witch-hunt from miss Lance and her bosses at the CNRI. But I can tell you this. I am an honest businessman, and I will fight this slander to my last dime and breath. That's all I have to say, thank you." Somers said before he walked inside.

"Oh, there's Mr. Queen and Miss Merlyn. Mr. Queen, do you want to follow up? What happened in there, ma'am? Tell us what happened inside." The reporters said.

"Step back everybody, please," Diggle said trying to give us a path to the car.

"Can you give us a couple comments about the island? Before you go, sir, please. A couple of comments about the island, sir. What happened in there?" Oliver and I got into the back seat of the car as Diggle kept everyone off us.

"Everybody, step back. Hey man, I'll make you swallow that Nikon. Back!" Oliver moved to the front seat and took off with me laughing in the back as Tommy and Diggle watched us leave.

* * *

Martin Somers. Laurel's targeted the worst of starling city, so it's no surprise his name is on Mr. Queen's list. The city's police and the D.A. can't stop him Or won't. Laurel thinks she's the only one willing to bring him to justice. She's wrong.

* * *

"You, listen up. The longer this goes on, the more likely the media is gonna crucify me. You shut this trial down, do you understand me?" We heard Somers say before I shut down the lights in the room. "What the hell?" Oliver and I began our quick work of killing his men before the lights turned on. Somers looked around in panic before Oliver snuck up behind him and knocked him out. He picked him up, and we moved to the roof and tied him upside down. He started moving around just enough to get him swinging as he opened his eyes.

"Martin Somers," Oliver said.

"Who the hell are you?" Somers yelled at us.

"You've failed this city." Oliver finished saying before knocking an arrow.

"No! No, no, no, no, no!" Oliver let the arrow fly missing Somers by a hair.

"You're gonna testify in that trial. You're gonna confess to having Victor Nocenti killed. There won't be a second warning." Oliver told him as I pulled out one of my throwing knives and threw it at his face making a small scratch. As he screamed over the minor injury, we left the rooftop and went to our respective homes.

* * *

The first night on the island was hard. We'd made ourselves a small shelter before falling asleep as close to each other as we could to try and keep warm. We were drawn awake by the seagulls who were flying around Mr. Queen's body.

"Hey! Hey, get away! Hey!" Oliver shouted as he jumped up and ran to him with me close behind him. "Dad?" Ollie cried holding onto his father's hand.

"Ollie, we need to bury him," I told him, and he nodded before we noticed another seagull.

"Hey! Hey, stay away from him!" Ollie said pushing them away once more.

* * *

"Attorney for shipping magnate, Martin Somers, has confirmed his client has no intention of testifying, maintaining his innocence in the wrongful death of Victor Nocenti." I heard on the television in the parlor and shook my head.

"I didn't know you have an interest in this." I turned and watched my father walk closer to me.

"I don't, but after being unable to watch things like this for five years, I now realize what I'd missed," I told him before we went to sit at the dining table to eat the excellent breakfast in front of us.

"What are your plans today?" he asked me.

"I plan on roaming the city then meeting Oliver later this evening," I told him, and he sighed.

"Why are you always meeting Oliver?" he asked me.

"Why wouldn't I be meeting a friend of mine?" I asked him.

"You were alone with him for five years. I think it's time to expand your social circle." He told me, and I shook my head.

"You're acting as though I have a choice of people who want to spend time with me," I said.

"You do. You're a beautiful woman who can be with whoever you want to be with." He told me, and I shook my head at him.

"Not really," I said. "Most people in this city want to be around me because I'm wealthy or because they want to have their fifteen minutes of fame. Not a lot of people care."

"What about Laurel?" He asked me.

"She's probably at the bottom of my fan list right now," I said.

"Why?" He asked me.

"She thinks Oliver and I were on the yacht together," I told him.

"But you were." He said, and I sighed.

"Not what I meant dad," I told him, and he nodded finally getting what I said.

"And you weren't, right?" He asked me, and I gave him a look. "Sorry, I had to be sure."

"I have to go. I'll see you later." I told him before getting up and leaving. I went to the old steel factory and spent the day training only to be startled by Oliver storming in.

"Get ready." He said getting his outfit on.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"They attacked Laurel." He stated, and I stayed getting ready for our night time activities.

We wanted to give Martin Somers the chance to confess and face a court's justice, but he chose to go after someone we cared about instead. He's still going to face justice. It'll just be a different kind.

* * *

We made our way silently around the docks. When we found one of Somers men, I crept behind him and quickly took him out before we heard the radio he was wearing come to life.

"Wallace? Wallace, you copy? Wallace?" The man on the other end asked. I picked up the radio and offered it to Oliver, but he declined it.

"Wallace isn't here. But we are. " I told him. We immediately began our work of getting to Somers moving around the outside of the building his office was in. The few men he had posted fired their weapons at us so it was the only noise we could hear. Oliver and I quickly took them out so that the only thing they'd hear would be his bow and the sound of the metal we moved around on. Once his men were out of the way we looked down and watched as our host ran from us.

"Somers!" Oliver shouted at him. We followed him into a different building where Oliver pinned him to a crate with an arrow.

"Oh, God, no, no, no." He begged.

"He can't help you," Oliver told him before I took one of my knives and threw it next to his head. "We want the truth about Victor Nocenti."

"I can't. The triad will kill me." He told us.

"The triad's not your concern right now," I told him before throwing another knife between his legs.

"All right, all right, all right. It wasn't me that killed him. It was the triad." He told us.

"Acting on whose instructions?" Oliver asked him. When he didn't answer, I threw a knife just above his head. "Whose?!"

"All right, all right. It was mine. It was mine, all right? Nocenti said he was gonna testify against me." Somers confessed before looking behind us. Oliver and I quickly turned and saw an Asian woman with platinum blond hair.

"Yuǎnlí tā." (Move away from him.) She told us.

"Ràng wǒmen." (Make us.) He told her. She attacked us with two knives, and I quickly pulled out my sais and blocked her attacks. Oliver pulled watched from the sidelines as she and I fought. She pushed me away from Somers and around a large column structure before she kicked me in the back, forcing me to the ground. Oliver tried jumping in, but I kicked her legs out from under her. I moved around to stab her, but she was just out of reach, and we both jumped up before continuing. She tried kicking me again numerous times, but I managed to dodge them as she did mine.

"Put down your weapons, or we will open fire. I repeat, lay down your weapons." The three of us paused for a moment before running in opposite directions. As we ran, Oliver threw his bow on top of a steel container while I sheathed my sais before jumping on it to save time versus going around. We jumped down only to hear the one person we had to avoid.

"Freeze!" Detective Lance shouted. "You twitch, and you're dead. Bow and knives down, hands up." He ordered. Oliver handed me the recording he'd made, and I threw it at the detective's gun. When he was distracted, we quickly left the area and went back to the factory.

* * *

The sun was rising as we began to put everything away.

"My mom wants me to run the company." He finally told me.

"What do you want to do?" I asked him.

"I can't do board meetings then come out and clean up the city, I told me.

"I didn't ask what you could or couldn't do. I asked what you wanted to do." I told him, and he sighed.

"I can't let you do this alone." He said.

"This is pretty much a one-man mission right now, so if you wanted to take a position at the company you could and I can handle the streets," I told him. "You have to think this through Oliver. Your dad wanted this for you just like he asked you to right his wrongs." He paused in thought for a moment before he nodded to me.

"I know what I have to do."

* * *

Later in the day, I was standing next to my dad at Queen Consolidated for the opening of their new building.

"You didn't have to be here, dad," I told him.

"Am I not allowed?" He asked me.

"I didn't say that," I told him.

"I'm here to spend time with my daughter and support a friend." He told me, and I rolled my eyes.

"Where was all this parental concern when I was a kid?" I asked him harshly before I saw Walter go to the podium

"Good afternoon. And thank you all for coming. Welcome to the future site of the Robert Queen memorial applied sciences center." Everyone applauded during the pause. "Now, this is a building that will stand as a monument to the man whose company and vision are his greatest legacies."

"Whoa! Whoa!" We all turned and watched as Oliver removed his arms from around two women and grabbed an orange drink from the waitresses tray close to him. He took a small drink before putting it back and moving up to his family. "What about me? Right? I'm a legacy. Hey! Thanks for warming them up, Walt. All right. Ow! Fine, fine shovel. I got it." He took the shovel from Walter and stood at the mic before pretending to drop it. "Whoa! Ow! I got it. I got it. Some of you may not know me. My name is Oliver Queen." He paused a moment for the audience's reaction. "Watch some television, read a newspaper, one of my best friends, the beautiful Ashlee Merlyn, and I are kind of famous right now. Why don't you come up here Ashlee." He told me, and I sighed before making my way to him. He helped me on the stage between himself and Walter, and I smiled awkwardly at the press. "Mostly, though, I'm famous because I'm Robert Queen's son. Uh, but as Walter, who's my new dad Huh? Who is... sorry. As Walter was saying, I'm not much of a legacy, per se, not like Ashlee and her brother are for there father. "

"Oliver, you don't have to do this." Walter tried telling him.

"No, sit. Sit! Gosh." Oliver told him, and Walter sat next to his wife. Oliver and I had planned everything for this moment. Well, everything except me being on stage with him. "See, I was supposed to come here today, and I'm supposed to take my rightful place at the company. Prodigal son returns home and becomes the heir apparent. But I'm not my father. I'm not the man he was. I'm not half the man he was. I never will be. So, please, stop asking me to be." He put the shovel into the dirt and wrapped his arm around my waist before he got off stage, him pretending to need me to be stable.

* * *

"Martin Somers, the CEO of starling port, was arrested last night for the murder of Victor Nocenti. He is also being accused of accepting cash, including over $10 million in bribes." I turned from the television and watched Oliver cross Somers name from his list.

* * *

I walked behind Ollie as he carried his father's body up the hill and helped lower him to the ground as Ollie sat next to him. I watched as he pulled something out from a secret pocket close to his father's foot. He opened it and flipped through the blank pages before opening to the cover to see a strange symbol. He put the book away, and we spent hours building a grave for Robert Queen. Suddenly a sharp pain tore through my side, and I screamed out only seconds before Ollie. We both fell, and I looked at my side to see an arrowhead before passing out completely.


	3. The Lone Gunman

Inside our hideaway, Oliver was training while I looked more information on our next target. My name is Ashlee Merlyn. To my family, I am the sister and daughter who just returned home after being lost at sea 5 years ago with my best friend Oliver Queen. They don't know we came back with a mission, to bring justice to our city, and they never can. The men and women we've targeted are dangerous, corrupt, virulent cancer. Cancers like James Holder, whose corporation put defective smoke detectors in low-income housing in The Glades. There have been many fires and too many funerals. I showed Oliver the man and the reports and he looked at the name in the book. Cancers can be fought and conquered. All it takes is a surgeon and the right instrument. We suited up before leaving.

* * *

"Heh. Other than the bill I got handed this morning by my legal team, I'm feeling pretty good. Plus, now that this lawsuit's been settled, we can focus our attention on Unidac Industries. Ok. I'll see you in the office first thing." Holder hung up his phone and tossed it on one of the chairs beside him. He was about to take a drink when Oliver shot an arrow through the glass he was holding. He quickly turned and saw me behind him. "I have armed security inside. All I have to do is call out." He told us.

"Go ahead. They can't hear you." Oliver told him and I tossed one of the guns the men on his security detail had.

"What the hell do you want?" Holder asked us.

"How many people died in those fires? How many?! The courts say you don't owe your victims anything. I disagree. James Holder…" Oliver was interrupted by Holder getting shot. He quickly turned and aimed his bow where the bullet came from and fired off two before taking cover. I moved quickly and took cover before holding my hand over my left shoulder. I removed it to find blood. The bullet must have gone through Holder and into my shoulder. Once we knew it was safe to move we moved from our cover and quickly left the scene before the cops arrived to check out the sound of gunshots.

* * *

We went back to the Steel factory and I undressed enough to see the bullet wound.

"Didn't pass through so I'll have to get it out of you," Oliver told me and I sat at the desk and waited for him to get what he needed before taking out the bullet and stitching me up. "Do you remember hearing anything about that guy from before we left?" He asked me and I shook my head as he finished stitching me up.

"It's no surprise a man as corrupt as James Holder has more than one enemy though," I told him once putting on some different clothes.

"But who? " Oliver asked sitting down and crossing Holder's name off the list before leaning back in his chair. I moved to get a drink of water when I stumbled into the desk where the computer was.

"The bullet. Poison." I said staring at Oliver with my eyes wide. Oliver quickly grabbed the keys to one of the wooden chests we kept with us and unlocked it. He dug through it until he found the herb and gave it to me. I quickly took it and some water from the water bottle next to me. I downed it before falling into Oliver's arms on the ground.

* * *

When I came to Oliver was already up and turning towards a Chinese man in a green hood. I liked down at my side and saw the arrow still sticking out of my shirt.

"Who are you? Why did you shoot us?" Oliver asked him. The man replied in Chinese before holding out his hands, one holding an herb and the other a cup of water. We looked up at him confused with what he wanted us to do. He said something in Chinese again and we each took the herb and ate it before washing it down with water. The man quickly moved to Ollie's shoulder and pulled out the arrow that was still in him making my friend scream in pain before moving to me.

* * *

I sat up quickly, taking in a deep breath as an alarm went off on the computer screen.

"Hey, you okay? " Oliver asked me moving to me from where he was training.

"I'm fine. We need to leave." I said getting up and pointing to the clock.

"Damn it." He said before we left to go to his place.

* * *

When we got there we saw a cop car in the drove way and we quickly went inside to see Mrs. Queen and Walter talking to two cops and Thea sitting on one of the couches in the room. When we got closer to them Diggle turned to us.

"What happened? Thea ok?" Oliver asked him.

"The cops brought her home. Her and some of her friends broke into a store, tried on some dresses last night. Lit up the breathalyzer like a Christmas tree. So how was your evening, sir?" Diggle asked.

"You mean after I said I had to go to the bathroom at dinner and never came back?" Oliver asked.

"I guess from now on I'll be watching you pee." Diggle told him. The two men stared at each other for a moment before Oliver moved past him into the living room.

"Thank you, officers. My wife and I appreciate it. I'll see you out." Walter said walking out of the room with the two officers.

"Last time it was public intoxication. This time breaking and entering. My, how we are moving up in the criminal world." Mrs. Queen said as Thea stood from her seat.

"You know, when you pay off the store owner, you should check out the merchandise. They got some pretty killer outfits." Thea told her.

"Thea, go get ready for school." Her mother ordered.

"Uh, you know, I was thinking of taking a sick day." Thea said and the two women stared at each other.

"Fine, then get some sleep." Mrs. Queen told her. Thea walked towards us with her hands over her chest and a smirk on her face.

"You two look like crap." She told us before leaving the room.

"You're letting her play hooky?" Oliver asked his mother moving further into the room.

"When your sister gets like this, it's best to give her her space." Mrs. Queen told him.

"She's testing you." Oliver told her.

"Yes. Who'd she learn that from?" She asked him sarcastically and I looked down. Thea learned from the best at testing parents. Tommy, Oliver and I had always gotten what we'd wanted before the island. It helped that I was my father's princess and could wiggle myself or of any trouble.

"Mom. When I was her age, you and dad let me get away with murder. Looking back, I could have used less space and more parenting." Oliver scolded her before taking my hand amd leaving the house again.

* * *

"Do we know what the poison was yet?" I asked Oliver taking the last drink from the water I kept with me while working out.

"The bullets were laced with curare, a rare and deadly poison, the killer's unique M. O. He's killed all over the world Chicago, Markovia, Corto Maltese. Interpol even has a codename for him Deadshot." Oliver told me. We were prepared to give James Holder a chance to right his wrongs, but this Deadshot has no morality, no honor, no code. He doesn't kill for justice, which makes him as dangerous as anyone on our list. In fact, it puts him right at the top.

* * *

Later in the day we came back to the factory with Tommy and Diggle so we could purpose our covert idea.

"So what do you think? Great spot for a nightclub or what?" Oliver asked the two men.

"Sweet. Though I got to tell you, man, if you're thinking about calling it Queens, I don't think you're gonna get the clientele that you were hoping for." Tommy told him.

"He won't be calling it Queens because we'll be owning this together." I told Tommy and he gave me a curious look.

"Private office." Oliver said pointing out a good spot for it.

"For the private one-on-one meetings, I would imagine." Tommy said hitting Oliver lightly on the chest.

"Hopefully the occasional two-on-one meeting." Oliver told him making my brother laugh.

"Why do I hang out with the two of you again?" I asked them.

"So you'd never be bored."Oliver told me and I nodded my head.

"That's it." I agreed.

"Man, are you two sure you want to do this? It's not like you really have any experience in running a well, running anything." Tommy reminded Oliver. "Ash you went to school for running a corporation not a club."

"We're sure." I told him and he sighed.

"How about tomorrow night the three of us, we go and scope out the competition. There's a new club opening downtown. It's called Poison. Max Fuller owns it." He told us.

"Max Fuller?" Oliver asked him.

"Mm-hmm." Tommy nodded.

"I slept with his fiancée." Oliver reminded him.

"Yeah, before the wedding." Tommy said.

"It was at the rehearsal dinner." Oliver said.

"The rehearsal dinner is technically before the wedding. Right?" Tommy asked and they laughed. "And besides, who stays mad at a castaway? Where were you that night?" Tommy asked me.

"With Max." I told them making them both give me strange looks.

"How do we not know this?" Tommy asked looking at Oliver.

"You were both busy." I told them shrugging my shoulders. Tommy's phone began to ring and he checked it before making a face.

"Ah, dammit, I got to roll. Anyway, I'll see you later, man. Good place. See you." Tommy said before walking away. We watched him leave before turning to Diggle.

"So what do you think?" Oliver asked him.

"Well, I'm here to provide security, sir, not a commentary." Diggle told him.

"Oh, that doesn't sound like a good evaluation." I said.

"Oh, come on, Dig, do me a favor. Speak freely, please." Oliver begged him.

"Well, this is The Glades, right? Your rich white friends wouldn't come to this neighborhood on a bet." Diggle told us.

"I am Oliver Queen:and this is Ashlee Merlyn, right?" Oliver asked him and he nodded. "People would stand in line for 3 hours if we opened a club."

"And no one who actually lives in The Glades would see a penny of those cover charges." Diggle told us and it made me smile that he was worried about The Glades.

"So we make it a successful business, we gentrify the neighborhood." I offered to them and Oliver agreed with me.

"I was wondering when we would get to that. The white knight and his princess swooping in to save the disenfranchised. All on their lonesome. With no on to help them." Diggle said mocking the idea.

"Wow. You don't think very much of us, do you?" Oliver asked him.

"No, sir, actually, I have a very high regard for how perceptive you two are. Sir." Diggle nodded his head to us before walking back to the car. We turned and looked around once more before walomg with him. The nightclub will conceal my base underneath and provide an alibi for where Oliver Queen and Ashlee Merlyn spends their nights.

* * *

Later in the day Oliver and I made our way to the alley between where we were with Holder and Deadshot was shooting at us. If we were going to find Deadshot, we needed more than speculation. We needed evidence. Fortunately, Oliver sent one of his shots wild. The trajectory would place the bullet in this vicinity. I watched Oliver climb up the wall to the bullet hole before digging the bullet from the wall. Once he climbed back down he showed me the flattened bullet and we left so we could find more information on it. Once we got back we put the bullet under a microscope and I pulled up the police reports from the Holder case we knew they'd be doing. They'd found Oliver's arrows and my knives and assumed it was us, the hood and the bandit. What horrible names.

"7.62 millimeter rounds." I told him and I looked up more information. "The money trail leads back to the Bratva the Russian mob."

"Finally some good luck." Oliver said.

* * *

We grabbed some hats and put them on before we left to go meet the Bratva. After ditching Diggle we walked to the mechanic shop and removed our hats to find two men working on a car.

"Мы ищем Алекси Леоновым. (We're looking for Alexi Leonov.)" Oliver told them.

"Там нет ни одного здесь с таким именем. (There's no one here by that name.)" one of the men told us.

"Не в вашем гараже. В подвале под ним. (Not in your garage. In the basement underneath.)" I said as we finally got up to them. The first man looked behind him to the second who made walked to us. He pulled out a gun and Oliver quickly grabbed his gun hand and forced him to release the gun. I picked it up and disarmed the weapon as Oliver let the man go. Oliver pulled down the top of his shirt while I lifted mine up to show our tattoos to him.

"Мы Bravta. (We're Bravta.)" Oliver told them. I released my shirt and fixed it. "Мы хотим, чтобы Алекси Леоновым. (We want to see Alexi Leonov.)"

"Pleased to meet you." The first man said before leading us down to the basement. "I apologize. We meant no disrespect to two captains. Particularly American ones. So How can I be of assistance?"

"We're in the market for a hired gun. Someone the organization's used before. His calling card is a 7. 62 millimeter gun laced with curare." Oliver told him.

"I know no man who uses such tools." He told us.

"But you can find out who does." I said and he looked me over.

"First, we will drink to each other's health, then I will look into the identity of this man you seek." He said handing us shot glasses. We all drank the shot before putting the glasses back on the table in front of us. "Ahh. I will also confirm that you are really Bratva captain. Should this not be the case, I will send my mechanic here to find you and kill you and your family." We glanced up at the man who held a gun on us earlier before leaving the garage.

* * *

Later that night, Tommy took Oliver and I to the club like he'd promised he would. I wore a red dress that fell to mid-thigh and had a V-neck. I wore dangle earings that housed black stones and fishnet stockings with ankle heeled boots to complete it.

"Ha ha ha! Oh, my, this is going to be killer." Tommy said as we walked towards the bouncer with Diggle behind us.

"If Max never sees me here I agree." Oliver told him.

"Ah, if you want to run a business, you've got to take a few risks." Tommy told him as we walked past the bouncer.

"Mr. Queen." Diggle called to Oliver and we all stopped and turned to him.

"Oh! I have never seen this guy before in my life. Ever." Oliver said before wrapping his arm around my waist and walking with the two of us into the club.

"Oh, come on, he's good." Tommy said to Oliver.

"You should be nicer to him. Anyone else would have quit by now." I told him and he just gave me a small smile as we walked in. Inside the club was like any other, people dancing, bright lights flashing. Everywhere.

"Oh, wow!" Tommy said as we walked up to Laurel at the bar. "Doesn't you going out and having fun violate some kind of law, you know, like the ones that are carved on a stone tablet?"

"That's cute, Tommy." She told him sarcastically.

"Thanks." He said to her.

"I can see you three are up to your old hunting patterns." She said looking at the three of us. She glanced at Oliver's arm around me but said nothing.

"Just seeing what passes for fun in starling city after five years." Oliver told her with a smile.

"Ah. Well, I'm sure you'll find that it just hasn't been the same without you two." Laurel told us and I smiled at her before a familiar voice threw us off.

"Big brother!" Thea ran towards us and moved between Oliver and myself with a large smile on her face. "Oh! I am so wasted right now. There is there is two of you." Laurel, Tommy and myself all turned towards the bar away from the siblings, giving a semblance of piece.

"I thought you were grounded." He said to her.

"I am. And thank you thank you for that, by the way." She said to him.

"You're done for the night." He told her.

"Oh, what are you going to do?" she asked him. "Tell mom?"

"Thea! You are hanging with the wrong people." He warned her.

"You're one to talk. How much do you know about your own so-called friends over here?" she asked him and I turned to her confused.

"Oh, Thea, maybe you should –" Tommy said making him and Laurel turn to her.

"Tommy I think your BFF has a right to know." She told him.

"Thea, let's go." Oliver told her, grabbing her arm.

"Well, I guess they never told you that they've been screwing while you were gone." Thea told him. Laurel looked down in shame while Thea just looked proud of herself.

"Look, man, I –" Tommy started saying but Oliver stopped him.

"Tommy It's ok. You and me, we're done for the night." Oliver said grabbing her arm and forcing her with him.

"Take your hands off of me. You're not my father. And you're barely my brother." She told him before walking away. I went to him and put my hand on his arm for comfort.

"Well look at this. Oliver Queen." We turned to see Max standing with some security guards.

"Max Fuller. How you been?" Oliver asked him with a smile.

"Happy you drowned." Max told him before turning to me. "Not so happy you drowned." We followed him to his back office.

"Hey, Max –" Oliver started saying only for him to get punched in the face by Max.

"Oliver!" I shouted as I saw him clench his fist.

"Get him up!" Max ordered

"Hey, let him go, let him go! Hey, I said let him go!" Tommy said as he and I got in between Oliver and Max.

"Told you he was going to be pissed." Oliver told Tommy.

"Back off, Merlyn. This isn't your problem." Max told us.

"You want to get to him? You've got to go through me." Tommy told him and his security started moving towards it. "Wow, they are probably going to get through me." They attacked us and we pushed Tommy out of the way and started fighting the guards. Oliver and I had to be careful not to do something that could really harm them. We had to be who we were before the island. One of them finally grabbed me and pinned my arms to my sides and started beating on Oliver. Suddenly we heard Max fall to the ground and turned to stare at Laurel who was standing over Max.

"So is this over, Max? Or are you going to have your boys pound on me next?" she asked him. He quickly stood and everyone waited his answer.

"You four consider yourselves banned for life. Get the hell out of my place!" Max said leaving his office.

"Your club sucks anyway." Tommy called after him.

"You guys ok?" Laurel asked as Tommy checked me over the best he could.

"Where'd you learn to do that?" Oliver asked her.

"Cop dad, remember? He made me take self defense classes." She told him before walking away from us.

"Laurel. Thea said –" Oliver started saying but she stopped him.

"Oliver, Tommy and I don't need your blessing. And I don't need your forgiveness." She told him.

"Ah." Was all Oliver could say.

* * *

On the island, I woke to hear water dripping close by. Oliver grabbed my hand before putting the other over my mouth. We then ran away as quickly as we could though the forest not stopping until we were trapped in a black net trap.

* * *

"Why don't you guys take a seat, and I will grab a couple of burgers and some ice for those faces." Diggle told us at the Belly Burger as a woman at the counter waved to him.

"The girl's pretty cute." Tommy said waving to her.

"That's my sister in law." Diggle told him and I stifled a laugh at his face.

"Who I will never speak to or look at. Ever." Tommy told him. "Gonna grab a booth."

"She's not wearing a wedding ring." Oliver noted to Diggle.

"Brother out of the picture?" I asked him.

"Yeah, you could say that." He told us before going to the woman.

"Perhaps not mentioning his brother would be best." I said getting curious about his past.

"Maybe. Let's go sit down." He said and we linked arms before sitting with Tommy in the booth.

"Look, man about Laurel. I was going to tell you. I was just trying to figure out the right way." Tommy told him.

"To tell somebody that you slept with their girlfriend after they went missing and were then presumed dead." Oliver said.

"Finally a card Hallmark hasn't made yet." I said making them both chuckle.

"Look it was wrong. And I'm sorry –" Tommy told him.

"Tommy. I was dead." Oliver reminded him.

"No, man, you were with Laurel. And whether you were dead, or as it turns out, alive on a deserted island, you are my friend. And me being with Laurel violated that friendship in about 50 different ways." Tommy insisted.

"Thank you. But it's ok." Oliver told him taking my hand in his.

"You are being really chill about this. I…" Tommy started saying before Oliver's phone rang.

"Hello?" he answered it. " Dayte mne minutku chtoby izbavit'sya ot kogo-to." He put the phone to his chest and smiled at Tommy. "It's a Russian model calling me. Can I can a have a minute, please?" (Give me just a minute to get rid of someone.)

"I can see now why you were able to be so chill. Enjoy. " Tommy said before he and I left the booth for Oliver's phone call with the Bravta.

"You seem okay with him talking to Russian models." Tommy said and I gave him a look.

"Why wouldn't I be?" I asked him.

"Well you two have been close since coming home." He said and I just gave him another look. "Sorry, I just want my baby sister to be safe."

"We're twins, Tommy." I reminded him with a smile before seeing Oliver nod. We had the address. "Besides if Oliver and I were together, not only would you know but if he'd ever hurt me I'd kill him." I said before going back to the booth we'd been at.

* * *

That night we suited up and quietly made out way to the address we'd been provided. We stood in front of the door before kicking it in. Oliver immediately shot an arrow at the man sitting behind the computer but he just dodged behind the desk. He sat up and began firing on us and we quickly moved to either side of the door to avoid being shot again. Once he was done firing at us I grabbed one of my knives as Oliver prepared another arrow. Oliver shot at Deadshot only to hit the lamp behind him when he ducked. I threw my knife at him but he moved out of the way lifting the bed to block it. He lowered the bed and fired at us again and we dodged again. We turned to fire at him again only for him to jump out the window. We ran into the room and looked out the window to find him but he was gone. We heard the police sirens coming closer and ran into the room to find something to help us only to find his computer shot all to hell. We grabbed it and ran away before the cops arrived.

* * *

The next morning at Queen Consolidated we walked down to the IT Department to speak with the best in the company.

"Ahem. Felicity Smoke?" The young blonde turned to us with a red pen in her mouth. "Hi. I'm Oliver Queen and this is my friend Ashlee Merlyn."

"Of course. I know who you are, you're Mr. Queen and she's Miss Merlyn." Felicity said.

"No, Mr. Queen was my father." He told her.

"And it's just Ashlee. I'm not my mother." I told her.

"Right, cause they're dead. I mean, he drowned and she was shot. But you didn't, which means you could come down to the I. T. department and listen to me babble. Which will end. In 3 2 1." She said before she stopped talking.

"I'm having some trouble with my computer and they told me that you were the person to come and see." Oliver said giving her Deadshot's computer. "I was at my coffee shop surfing the web and I spilt a latte on it."

"Really?" she asked him.

"Yeah." He answered.

"'Cause these look like bullet holes." She pointed out.

"My coffee shop is in a bad neighborhood." He lied horribly and she gave him a look. "If there is anything that you can salvage from it, I would really appreciate it."

"Mm-hmm. " She reluctantly agreed, taking the computer and getting started. It took a while before she found what we were looking for. "It looks like blueprints."

"Do you know what of?" I asked her.

"The exchange building." She told us.

"Never heard of it." Oliver told her.

"It's where the Unidac industry's auction is scheduled to take place. I thought you said that was your laptop." She reminded him and I rolled my eyes.

"Yes." Oliver said slowly.

"Look, I don't want to get in the middle of some Shakespearian family drama thing." She told us and he gave her a blank look.

"What?" he asked her.

"Mr. Steele marrying your mom. Claudius, Gertrude Hamlet?" she listed off.

"I didn't study Shakespeare at any of the four schools that I dropped out of." He told her and nodded in agreement.

"He really didn't."

"Mr. Steele is trying to buy Unidac Industries. And you've got a company laptop associated with one of the guys he's competing against." She told us.

"Floyd Lawton." Oliver and I said.

"No. Warren Patel. Who's Floyd Lawton?" she asked us.

"He is an employee of Mr. Patel, evidently." Oliver told her before we left with the building with the bullet ridden computer and a printed blueprint.

"The exchange building is surrounded by 3 towers with eye lines into the building. Lawton could get a kill shot off from virtually anywhere." I said looking at the printed sheet of the blueprints. "Oliver we can't cover the area alone. We're going to need help this time."

* * *

That night Oliver and I suited up and went to the police station to wait for our favorite detective. We watched as he walked to his car. He was pulling his keys out when Oliver jumped him, pulling his arm behind his back and slamming him onto the car.

"Ah, you son of a bitch!" Detective Lance said angrily.

"Detective, quiet!" Oliver told him.

"You've got a pair on you, pulling this right outside the police station!" Lance told us.

"Floyd Lawton's the one targeting the buyers interested in Unidac Industries. Interpol calls him "Deadshot" because he never misses. You can look this up after we go." Oliver told him disguising his voice.

"Yeah, and stop chasing you, I two suppose?" Lance asked us

"Chase us all you like Detective, but Warren Patel hired Lawton. We can't be sure who they're targeting, it might be all the buyers, and we can't protect them in a space that big. We need your help." I told him.

"Yeah? Professional help." He said and I rolled my eyes at him.

"Lawton laces his bullets with curare. Tell your men to wear kevlar." I said placing the laptop next to him. Oliver stuck an arrow next to his head and we quickly left the area.

"I'll them to shoot you." He shouted after us.

* * *

I walked into the room on Oliver's arm in a. I wore a strapless red dress that stopped midthigh with floral designs going from my bust falling diagonally to my left waist and gold heels. I wore pale white eyeshadow on my eye lids and a light shade of rose in the crease of my eyes accented by black eyeliner and red lipstick.

"You look beautiful." Oliver told me and I smiled at him.

"Thank you. You don't look so bad yourself." I said as we walked down the stairs. We made a beeline towards Walter when Detective Lance stopped us mid stride.

"Well, don't you scrub up nice?" he asked us and we smiled at him.

"Here to support my family." Oliver told him.

"Yeah, me, too, God help me." He said and I smiled at him.

"Thank you." I said before he scoffed at us and we moved to Diggle.

"Dig. Got your eyes open?" Oliver asked him.

"That's what I'm here for, sir. That and answering patronizing questions." He told us and I smiled at him.

"All part of the job description I suppose." I said and he nodded.

"This guy's out of time." Oliver said looking around. "If he's going to do something, it's going to happen before the auction."

"Sir?" Diggle asked looking at him confused.

"We heard the story on the radio." I said covering Oliver's mistake up quickly.

"Oliver. Ashlee." We looked to Walter and left Diggle for Oliver's step-father. "So pleased the two of you were able to attend." He said with a smile on his face.

"Hmm. Walter, the police said that some of the Unidac bidders were murdered. I just think that we should be a little bit more careful. My mother's already lost a husband." Oliver reminded him.

"Well, if Moira shared your concern, she wouldn't have come. And she definitely wouldn't have brought your sister." Walter told us. Oliver was about to say something when he saw his mother and sister and walked towards them instead.

"Him being worried about you is a good thing I believe. He's coming to accept you in his life." I told Walter with a smile. He smiled at me before offering me a flute of champagne. "Thank you.

"I should be thanking you. For your help in keeping him sane." He told me.

"What do you mean?" I asked him confused.

"It probably wasn't easy on the island but you managed to help him through it." He said and I smiled at him.

"No. It wasn't easy. You know Oliver as well as I do but we always managed to find each other if we were ever separated." I said and he smiled at me before taking another drink. We continued talking for a moment when Detective Lance quickly knocked the both of us down before a waiter was shot in the back. Everyone ducked and tried to stay out of the line of fire. Detective Lance escorted Walter and I out and I quickly made my way to the car where I had stashed my suit and quickly found a safe place to change before making my way to where I knew Oliver would be. I used my knives ship into the wall of the building I was climbing and had the hidden knives in my boots and jammed them in the walls. It didn't take me as long as I thought it would to get to the top as Oliver burst through the window. I followed him in and rolled away from the bullets Deadshot was firing at us. Oliver shot at him with his arrows and I threw a few knives at him which he dodged. We hid behind two separate pillars and stared at each other as Deadshot tried to quietly find us. He passed the both of us without seeing us and, once he was far enough in sight, Oliver hit him on the back of his neck. Oliver and I used the bars around us to get him on the ground before climbing them to stay out of his reach. He quickly got up and fired at us again but Oliver wrapped his hands around his neck and pushed him back. Deadshot got out of his grip and kicked him away from him. I quickly jumped on him and we slammed into a table, breaking it in two. Deadshot quickly stood up and aimed at me before Oliver hit him with his bow. Deadshot tried to aim his gun again but everytime he tried Oliver hit him with his bow. Eventually Oliver pinned him to a pillar, using his bow to cut of his air. Deadshot hit his arm then grabbed his arm forcing Oliver's bow away from his throat. I jumped in when Deadshot tried to shoot him and kicked him back. He continued to try and aim at us before he knocked the weapons in our hands down. We quickly went to grab them and hid from him.

"Drop your guns." Oliver ordered.

"I admire your work. Guess you won't be extending me any professional courtesy." Deadshot said.

"We're not in the same line of work." I told him. "Your profession is the murder of the innocent."

"You've taken lives." He told us.

"For the good of others. You're out for yourself." Oliver said. I heard Deadshot scoff before firing at us. When he'd paused Oliver quickly turned and fired an arrow at him. When we heard him fall we turned and walked to him to see an arrow in his eye. He was dead. We heard someone groan behind and went to attack them but were surprised to see Diggle holding an injured arm. We quickly grabbed him and supported him to our destination.

* * *

On the island I'd fallen asleep on Oliver only to be woken up by a sword in my face. The man said something in Chinese again before cutting us down. He said one more thing before we crawled out of the net after him.

* * *

Oliver and I quickly moved Diggle down the where all our things were hidden and he quickly made the antidote for the poison he'd given me and we gave it to him before waiting. Once Diggle woke up he reached into his jacket and drew his hand away with blood on his fingers. He turned to us as he sat up in confusion. Oliver stood up from his seat and we moved closer to him.

"Hey."


	4. An Innocent Man

My name is Ashlee Merlyn. For 5 years, I was stranded on an island with my best friend Oliver Queen and one goal- survive. Now we're home and we will fulfill his father's dying wish.

* * *

"You two can survive this." Mr. Queen said.

* * *

To use the list of names he left us and bring down those who are poisoning our city. To do this, we must become someone else. We must become something else.

* * *

Previously on "Arrow and Shadow"

* * *

We watched the Gambit go down into the ocean before being pulled onto a life raft.

* * *

"You're late." I told Oliver.

"My mother wants me to have a bodyguard." He told me.

* * *

The bullet must have gone through Holder and into my shoulder.

* * *

"The bullet. Poison." I said staring at Oliver with my eyes wide.

* * *

We heard someone groan behind and went to attack them but were surprised to see Diggle holding an injured arm. We quickly grabbed him and supported him to our destination. Oliver and I quickly moved Diggle down the where all our things were hidden and he quickly made the antidote for the poison he'd given me and we gave it to him before waiting. Once Diggle woke up he reached into his jacket and drew his hand away with blood on his fingers. He turned to us as he sat up in confusion. Oliver stood up from his seat and we moved closer to him.

"Hey."

"Oliver? Ashlee? You're the vigilantes." Diggle asked standing up and staring at us in shock. He tried to punch Oliver but he just moved out of the way and Diggle stumbled into the desk.

"Easy, Dig. You were poisoned."

"Son of a bitch," Diggle said before attacking again. Oliver grabbed him and held his arms behind him before leaning him against the table he'd woken up on.

"We could have taken you anywhere, could have taken you home. We brought you here." Oliver told him.

"You really did lose your minds on that island," Diggle said.

"Found a couple things along the way," Oliver told him.

"Like what, weapon classes?" Diggle asked us sarcastically.

"Clarity. Starling City is dying." Oliver told him.

"Our city is being poisoned by a criminal elite who don't care who they hurt, as long as they maintain their wealth and power," I informed him.

"What are you gonna do, take 'em all down by your lonesome?" Diggle asked.

"No. Now, we want you to join us." Oliver told him and he scoffed at us. "Special Forces out of Kandahar. It's perfect. You're a fellow soldier."

"Oliver, you and Ashlee aren't soldiers," Diggle told us. "You're criminals. And murderers." Diggle then turned and left the basement area we were in.

"Do you think he'll turn us in?" I asked Oliver once his bodyguard was out of hearing range.

"I don't know." He answered before we changed and went our separate ways.

* * *

Once I got home I opened and closed the door as quietly as I could before taking my shoes off so they wouldn't make a sound on the floor.

"Where were you?" I heard someone ask behind me. I sighed and turned to see my father.

"What are you doing still awake?" I asked him.

"I heard about the shooting at the exchange building." He told me.

"What about it?" I asked him.

"You were once again placed in danger by being near the Queen family." He told me and I shook my head at him.

"Dad. We've been over this. The Queen family has nothing to do with my life being in danger." I told him.

"I don't want you near Oliver. If I have to I will file a restraining order against him for you." He warned me.

"One that I won't listen to," I told him.

"You will or I will kick you out of my house." He threatened me.

"Then do it," I told him. "I will find a way to survive without you and your money."

"Where would you go? Your brother? Your precious Oliver Queen?" he asked me angrily.

"What I do after you kick me out of your house is none of your business," I told him before heading up the stairs.

"Don't expect to stay long." He told me and I ignored him as I made my way to my room.

* * *

I woke to a bird chirping, my head on Ollie's lap.

"What's going on?" I asked.

"Shengcún." The man said to us.

"What are we supposed to do with that?" Oli asked him.

"Shengcún." The man repeated.

"Does that mean "bird"?" Oli asked him.

"I don't think it means bird," I told my friend.

"Shengcún!" he said again.

"I don't speak Chinese!" Oli finally shouted at him. The man turned and walked away from us and Oli went back to staring at the photo in his hand I hadn't noticed before. "I'm sorry, Laurel. I'm so sorry."

* * *

I sat up quickly, the wind blowing outside my window and a knife in my hand. I looked around in my locked room but didn't see anything different from when I went to sleep. I got up and moved to a small home theater room. Tommy and I had played in this room for hours when we were kids, and now I was watching the news about a man who reportedly killed his wife.

"There were no signs of forced entry or any evidence of a struggle, but, hours later, the police found that the bloodstained kitchen knife in the trunk of his car. Forensic analysis verified Camille Declan's blood on the blade and Peter Declan's fingerprints on the handle. Despite the growing list of evidence, Peter Declan claimed innocence even after he was found guilty in court." The reporter said.

"Camille was everything to me. I couldn't kill her any more than I could kill myself." Peter Declan said in a video recorded in 2008. I looked at him on the video and gave it some deep thought before going back to my room. I got on my computer and looked up the information I wanted to know. I went into the police report and looked at the pictures from the crime scene. The knife was from their kitchen set they'd gotten as a gift on their wedding day. The knife had only his prints on it and her blood completely covering the blade. I pulled up the pictures and looked at anything that could show me if he truly killed his wife or it was a cover-up. I looked into his wife and found the one thing I needed. Jason Brodeur was Camille's former employer. I looked over a copy of the list I had and found his name. I leaned back in my seat and sighed.

* * *

That morning I quickly left and went to the steel factory and dug around some more. This was a more secure line for me to find what I needed. The reports say Peter Declan murdered his wife in cold blood. He had no alibi, and all the evidence pointed toward him. He was tried, convicted, and sentenced to death, an open-and-shut case. The odds are good that Brodeur is involved in this woman's murder, which means an innocent man is facing execution.

"I didn't expect to see you here this early." He told me.

"Saw something on the news last night when I couldn't sleep. Memories." I said turning to look at him.

"Yea. Same here. You heard about this guy too?" he asked.

"Yea. I don't buy it. He didn't really look like a guy who would kill his wife for no reason." I said. "The police report says neighbors hearing them having an argument before the time of death. That's one of the main reasons they believe he killed her. Plus all the evidence just stacked up in their laps for an easy win."

"That never happens without help." He said and I nodded. "The wife worked for Jason Brodeur."

"So what do we do? He's been found guilty and is set to die in two days." I reminded him.

"We get him a good lawyer." He told me.

* * *

Later that night, we suited up and I turned off the lights for Laurel's apartment and we waited in silence for her to come home from work. When she did she tried to turn on the lights she failed and she quickly looked around before quietly pulling a gun from a drawer and continuing to look around her apartment. She finally turned and saw us in her living room. Oliver activated the voice modifier before either of us spoke to her.

"Hello, Laurel." He said.

"Don't move!" she almost shouted at us.

"We're not gonna hurt you." He said.

"Stay back. My father's a cop." She warned us.

"You are making a huge mistake. I'm not the person you think I am, and I need your help." He told her.

"Peter Declan is gonna be executed in 48 hours. We think he's innocent. Declan's wife was gonna blow the whistle on Jason Brodeur. Brodeur had her murdered." I explained to her as Oliver handed her the file we'd spent the day making.

"There are a thousand lawyers in Starling City. Why me?" she asked us.

"We're all trying to help," Oliver said.

"What makes you sure I'm gonna help you?" she asked us.

"Because we know you'd do anything to save the life of an innocent man." He told her before we both disappeared from her apartment.

* * *

The next day Oliver and his new bodyguard were at my front door.

"New guy?" I asked him with a small smile.

"Diggle quit." He told me.

"I see. How is he?" I asked him.

"Still learning." He told me before we got into the car with the new guy driving us to where Diggle might have been as the two of us spoke of nothing he'd understand. We stopped in the front area with the new guy in front of us. He looked around the room before looking back at us.

"Area is secure, sir." He told him.

"Thank you very much, Rob." Oliver and I walked past him to Diggle and his sister-in-law. "Hello, Diggle's sister-in-law Carly. I'm Oliver Queen and this is my best friend Ashlee Merlyn."

"I know who you are." She told us.

"No, you really don't," Diggle told her from his seat. She smiled at us before walking away as we sat in the booth across from Diggle.

"Hello. I couldn't help but notice a distinct lack of police cars when I got home. I knew you wouldn't drop a dime on me. So have you considered our offer?" Oliver asked him.

"Offer." Diggle scoffed. "That's one hell of a way to put it."

"It is an offer. It's a chance to do the kind of good that compelled you to join the military." Oliver told him.

"Please. You two were born with platinum spoons in your mouths, Queen. What, you spent 5 years on an island with no room service, and suddenly you found religion?" Diggle asked scoffing at us again. Oliver took out the book with the list and showed it to Diggle.

"This was my father's. I found it when we buried him." Oliver told him.

"I thought you said your father died when the boat went down," Diggle said remembering what we kept telling everyone.

"We all made it to a life raft, but there wasn't enough food and water for everyone, so he shot himself and one other man in the head," I told him.

"As much as he was doing it to give us a chance to survive, I believe that he was also atoning for his sins. I need to right the wrongs done by my family, and we're offering you the chance to right the wrongs done to yours." Oliver said.

"Oliver, what are you talking about?" Diggle asked not believing us.

"The police never caught your brother's shooter, did they?" I asked him.

"Hey, you leave Andy out of this." He said warning us.

"The bullets were laced with curare which is Floyd Lawton's M. O. He is the sniper that we stopped at the exchange building," I told him.

"Are you trying to tell me that you took down Andy's killer?" Diggle asked us.

"We're-" Oliver stopped long enough for a waitress to pass us before continuing. "We're giving you a chance, a chance to help other people's families. Do you remember when the people in this city helped each other?"

"They can't do that anymore, because a group of people, people like Oliver's father. They see nothing wrong with raising themselves up by robbing others blind. It does need to stop, and if it's not gonna be the courts and it's not gonna be the cops then it's gonna be us." I said motioning to Oliver and myself.

"And, we hope, you," Oliver said before Rob joined us at the table as he got up from the booth. "I'm gonna go to the washroom, Rob." Oliver then left and I tried holding back my laughter as Rob waited patiently to him to return.

"Oh, that boy's long gone, man," Diggle told him and I released a small amount of laughter.

"Come on Rob. You can take me home then meet back up with Oliver later." I told him. "Think about what we said, Diggle. All we want to do it help." I chose that moment to walk away from the man before my phone went off. I looked at the screen to see a message from Oliver.

Laurel wants to meet. Suit up.

"Why don't you bring the car around Rob, I'll meet you out front," I told him smiling. He nodded before leaving the restaurant. I turned and went out back so I could get to the Steel Factory and change into my suit and meet Oliver and Laurel. I joined him on the rooftop and we waited for her to join us.

"You let her know a time and place?" I asked him and he just gave me a look making me laugh lightly. We soon heard Laurel's heels coming towards us and Oliver activated the device to distort our voices.

"I got your message." He told her.

"Is there a reason we can't do this face to face?" she asked us.

"You've met with Peter Declan," Oliver said, knowing the answer already.

"You were right. He might be innocent. Declan said his wife blew the whistle on Brodeur the day she was murdered." She informed us.

"Then we need to get whoever she told about Brodeur to testify," Oliver said moving past her.

"He already has. Matt Istook, Camille's supervisor. Only, he says that she didn't say a word to him." She told us.

"He's lying," I said.

"Well, if he is, then he's very convincing. He had the jury and police believing him." She told us.

"He hasn't been questioned by us," Oliver told her.

"I didn't become a lawyer to break the law or hurt anybody." She told us.

"We do what's necessary, what people like Peter Declan need," Oliver told her.

"If what you're doing isn't wrong then why are you hiding your faces with a hood and a mask?" she asked us.

"To protect the ones we care about," I told her.

"That sounds lonely." She told us and I looked at him through my mask.

"There's always the two of us. We're never alone." He told her before shooting an arrow into the side of another building. I walked up to him and he wrapped his arm around my waist as I wrapped mine around his neck before we swung off the roof to our next target of the night: Matt Istook.

* * *

When we found where Istook was, we waited for him to leave the building he worked in and go to his car. We saw him walk to the lone car in the parking lot and unlock it. When he opened the door Oliver blew a dart at him, hitting him in the back of his neck. We waited for him to fall unconscious before taking him to our interview site of choice. When he finally awoke we could just barely hear the train coming behind us.

"Matt Istook." He quickly sat up and turned towards us.

"You're them, that hood guy and mask girl. You're the pair that's been terrorizing the city." Istook said.

"Peter Declan," Oliver said getting him on the track we wanted him on. "Your lies helped put him on death row. Now, either it's time to tell us the truth, or it's time for the 10:15 to Blüdhaven." The train whistled behind us coming closer.

"O-ok." Istook stammered. "Ok, I- Brodeur paid me to- to say that Camille never spoke to me, but I didn't have anything to do with her death. Oh, God, please. I'll do anything. Y-you could have the file." He said as the train grew closer to us.

"What file?" I asked him.

"Camille gave me a file of evidence against Jason Brodeur." He told us.

"Where is it?!" Oliver shouted at him.

"Let me go, and I'll tell you." He told us.

"We don't make deals," I told him before we both walked past him and out of the way of the oncoming train.

"Wait! Wait! Wait! Wait! Don't go! It's in my desk! The file, it's in my desk at the office! You can have it! Get me out of here!" he begged us. Oliver fired an arrow at the handcuffs and Istook rolled off the track just as the train past the three of us.

* * *

Ollie and I sat in a corner of the cave at the Chinese man cooked something over the fire.

"What is that?" Ollie asked him. "I'm so hungry. It smells really good." Ollie went to grab a piece, but the man grabbed his hand and twisted it making him fall back towards me. "Aah! Hey, fine. Don't share." I helped Ollie sit back up as the man pointed to the bird and mimicked breaking its neck.

"Shengcún." He told us.

"I'm not gonna kill the bird." Ollie refused. The man just laughed lightly once before taking a piece of the recently cooked meat in his hand.

"Shengcún." He repeated before eating it.

* * *

After we retrieved the file we rushed over to Laurel's office where she was working alone again. I shut off the lights before we made our way closer to her. Oliver dropped the file in front of her before moving back again.

"Compliments of Matt Istook," Oliver told her.

"What's in here?" she asked us.

"Leverage on Jason Brodeur, enough to help save Peter Declan's life." He told her.

"As an attorney, I never would have gotten a file like this. I always thought the law was sacred, I-it fixed everything." She told us.

"And now, Laurel? Now, what do you think?" I asked her.

"I think there are too many people in this city who only care about themselves people who are selfish. I think they need someone who cares about the lives of other people. Someone like you." She told us. I looked down before we both turned and left the building.

* * *

I went home after changing back into my civvies and was on my way up to my room when I stopped and stared at a picture on the wall. My mother had threatened my father for a proper family photo for years before he finally consented. The picture was taken shortly before she'd been killed in the Glades and before dad had disappeared from our lives for all those years. Next to it was a picture of the Merlyn family and the Queen family. Our families had always been very close and my mother had made sure they knew we were taking family photos.

"Your mother loved this picture of all of us together," Dad said coming up behind me.

"I remember," I said staring at it.

"When she told me she'd gotten someone to take a picture of the family I hadn't known she'd invited Robert and his family until they'd gotten there." He said with a small smile on his face.

"You never talk about her," I said.

"What do you mean?" he asked me.

"Mom. You never talk about her, even when I was a kid." I told him finally turning to look at him.

"She would always joke about you, Tommy and Oliver. Saying the three of you would be there for each other forever just as Robert and I were. She even said she could see you and Oliver getting married in the future." He told me.

"Well, that'll never happen," I said.

"Not that I'm not happy to hear that, but why do you say that?" he asked me.

"Laurel Lance. He's still very much in love with her and wants to be with her again after earning her forgiveness." I told him.

"Well, then he's an idiot." My dad told me. "How about you, Tommy and I have lunch tomorrow? Just the three of us?"

"I'd like that," I told him before finishing the walk to my room.

The next afternoon I wore a strapless dark blue dress that fell to my had a black ribbon around the waist and black lace going up from the belt to the bust with dark blue peep-toe heels I wore black feather earrings, a raven necklace and a black ring with golden bracelets. I applied blue eyeliner, black mascara, and sheer gloss on my lips. The finishing touch was the golden clutch I carried and my hair is up in a bun with a few strands of hair framing my face. I made sure all my scars were covered before leaving for the restaurant my father had made reservations for. I smiled when I saw Tommy at the table with a glass of wine in hand.

"Ash, you look amazing." He told me standing and giving me a hug before pulling my seat out for me.

"So when is he supposed to arrive?" I asked checking my phone for the time.

"He's Dad. He'll be here when he gets here." He told me. I ordered a glass of wine and we drank while we talked about what I'd missed while on the island. We ordered an appetizer to share after a short time as we talked and finished it before dad finally showed.

"I see you two were catching up on old times." He said with a smile on his face.

"You were late so we also started without you," I told him.

"Then I'm glad I arrived before you ordered a five-course lunch." He joked and I forced a smile on my face before glancing at Tommy.

"Should we order lunch before someone gets a phone call and runoff." Tommy joked and we went ahead and ordered. The rest of the afternoon was pleasant and filled with small laughter. Dad told us things about mom and we all shared our memories when we were all together.

* * *

After lunch, I got a message from Oliver.

News about Declan. Meet tonight.

* * *

"We're not done yet," Oliver said angrily when Laurel told us the judge didn't stop the execution with the new evidence.

"I'm an attorney. Trust me. We're done." Laurel told him.

"What do you need to free Peter Declan?" I asked her.

"At this point, nothing short of a signed confession from Brodeur." She said.

"Consider it done," I told her before we turned to leave.

"Where are you going?" she asked us.

"To get a confession," Oliver told her before we left her alone.

"What do you want?" Brodeur asked after we'd cornered him in his office.

"You're gonna confess that you arranged to have Peter Declan's wife murdered," Oliver told him.

"What, so I can take his place in prison?" Brodeur asked us with disbelief in his voice.

"So you can avoid the death penalty." Oliver corrected.

"Except if I'm dead, well, then, you've got no one to pin Camille's murder on. You need me to exonerate Peter Declan. Maybe you could try to force me to sign a confession or something." Brodeur said before Oliver shot his hand with an arrow. "Yaah!"

"That might be difficult." He said before Brodeur's phone rang.

"My hand!" I pulled out the phone to see the number blocked and nodded to Oliver.

"Just answer the phone. Don't say anything stupid." I told him before answering the phone and putting it on speaker.

"What?" he growled into the phone.

"It's Ankov. It's going down, one hour." I hung up the phone a quickly pulled out a knife and laid it on his throat.

"What's going down in an hour?" I asked him.

"Peter Declan's execution is getting moved up." He said with a smirk on his face. I punched him hard enough to knock him out before we left.

"I won't be able to get into the prison," I told Oliver.

"I'll take care of it." He told me.

"Be careful," I told him before leaving for home.

The bird continued to make noise next to us as the man was working on something.

"Hey, please. I'm starving. I never killed anything before." Oliver called to him. He didn't say anything so Oliver who then slowly took the bird out of the cage and held it in his hands. "I'm sorry." He said holding the birds head in his hand.

"Let me," I said trying to take the bird from him.

"I can't let you do that." He told me.

"Together then," I said. Both our hands held the bird's head before snapping its neck, killing it. I took a deep breath.

"At least 5 federal, state, and local agencies are seeking millions of dollars in fines and environmental cleanup costs from Brodeur Chemical, new facts have come to light that Brodeur Chemical employee Camille Declan had discovered Brodeur was illegally disposing waste and had collected a file of evidence against her employer before her murder in 2007. Peter Declan, who was convicted of killing his wife, has been released, and the case has been reopened." I heard on the news, making me smile that we were able to help an innocent man.

* * *

Ollie and I were hovering over the meat from the bird as the Chinese man walked towards us.

"Shengcún." He said.

"Yeah. Bird. We know." Oliver said angrily.

"Shengcún not mean "bird." Shengcún mean "survive."" He told us.

"You speak English?" I asked him.

"You want survive this place, bird not last thing you kill." He said before showing Ollie the picture of Laurel from his wallet he'd been staring at since we got onto the island. "And forget her. You look at that all day, you not survive this place."

* * *

The next day, I met up with Oliver at his house in time to see Rob storming out.

"He quit?" I asked him.

"He couldn't handle the job requirements," Oliver told me. We walked into the house to see Diggle staring out the window.

"You here for the bodyguard position? 'Cause the new guy just quit." Oliver told him making him look at us.

"No, I'm not. I'm here about the other position. Just to be clear, I'm not signing on to be a sidekick. But you're right. Fighting for this city needs to be done, and you two are gonna do this with or without me." He said.

"Yeah." Oliver agreed while I nodded.

"But with me, there'll be fewer casualties, including the two of you." He told us.

"Diggle, I'm not looking for anybody to save me," Oliver told him.

"And I can take care of myself," I said.

"Maybe, but you both need someone just the same. You are fighting a war, except you two have no idea what war does to you, how it scrapes off little pieces of your soul. And you both need someone to remind you of who you are, not this thing you're becoming." Diggle told us. Oliver held out his hand for Diggle to shake which he did.

"Welcome to the team," I said with a smile on my face.

"Oliver Queen." We turned as Oliver's name was called out after the door was slammed open.

"What is this? You can't just barge in here." Walter said.

"Yeah? Well, I got a badge and a gun that say different." Detective Lance said.

"Hey, what the hell's going on?! Detective Lance—" Oliver said as the three of us walked into the entryway.

"Oliver Queen, you're under arrest on suspicion of obstruction of justice, aggravated assault…" Detective Lance said while arresting Oliver.

"What is going on?" Oliver's mom asked.

"Walter, stop them!" Thea called out from upstairs.

"Trespassing, acting as a vigilante…" Detective Lance continued.

"Are you out of your mind?!" Oliver asked him angrily.

"And murder. You have the right to remain silent. Give up that right." Lance told him leaving us all to stand in the entryway stunned by what had happened.


	5. Damaged

My name is Ashlee Merlyn. For 5 years, I was stranded on an island with my best friend, Oliver Queen, and one goal- survive. Now I will fulfill my father's dying wish To use the list of names he left me and bring down those who are poisoning my city. To do this, we must become someone else. We must become something else.

* * *

Previously on "Arrow and Shadow"

* * *

Still holding each other's hands we managed to swim to the surface before someone pulled us into a raft.

* * *

"Oliver Queen." We turned as Oliver's name was called out after the door was slammed open.

"What is this? You can't just barge in here." Walter said.

"Yeah? Well, I got a badge and a gun that say different." Detective Lance said.

"Hey, what the hell's going on?! Detective Lance—" Oliver said as the three of us walked into the entryway.

"Oliver Queen, you're under arrest on suspicion of obstruction of justice, aggravated assault…" Detective Lance said while arresting Oliver.

"What is going on?" Oliver's mom asked.

"Walter, stop them!" Thea called out from upstairs.

"Trespassing, acting as a vigilante…" Detective Lance continued.

"Are you out of your mind?!" Oliver asked him angrily.

"And murder. You have the right to remain silent. Give up that right." Lance told him leaving us all to stand in the entryway stunned by what had happened.

* * *

We stood next to the Chinese archer as he shot down a rabbit.

"Dinner." He said motioning for us to go collect it.

"Ah, come- hey, I got an idea, why don't you let me shoot that thing and you can go pick up the bloody, dead, disgusting animal," Ollie said to him. He held the bow out to him and Ollie looked at the man confused. "What?"

"Try." He told him. "Breathe. Everything, breathe. Breathe, aim fire." He said demonstrating how to use it. "Here." Ollie took the bow and an offered arrow. "Aim that tree. Breathe." Ollie aimed for the tree and let loose an arrow, missed the tree. The archer said something in his native language and I sighed.

"What does that mean?" Ollie asked him.

"You will die badly." He said taking the bow from my friend. "Get." The two of us went to collect dinner and Ollie's lost arrow. I was about to grab the dead rabbit when someone came up behind me and covered my mouth so they couldn't hear me screaming. Another man came in front of me and tied my hands together before they gagged me. They dragged me through the forest to a cage in the ground they were also putting Ollie in. "Ahh!" they shoved him inside followed shortly by me. "Ahh! Ahh! Ahh! Wait, wait! You can't leave me here! Don't do this to me, please!" Ollie begged him holding onto the bars. They used the buts of their guns to hit his fingers making him fall back into me. "Oh-oh! No! Please! I didn't do anything!"

* * *

The police think they know who Oliver is. They think he's the vigilante. The man in the hood terrorizing the city's criminals. They also think they have him trapped. That he has no way out. They're only half right.

"I want to see my son," Moira said as Walter and I followed her into the interrogation room.

"I'm in the middle of an interrogation here!" Detective Lance told us.

"Detective Lance, I know you hate my family, but I had no idea that you'd go so far to arrest my son without any grounds whatsoever!" Moira said angrily.

"I have solid grounds, and I have evidence." Detective Lance told her.

"Which you can present to Mr. Queen's attorney when he gets here. Until then, this interrogation is over, Detective." Walter told him.

"Sure. You have 15 minutes." He told us leaving the room.

"Detective Lance appears to be on some personal vendetta," Walter noted to Oliver.

"He is. He blames me for breaking his daughter's heart." Oliver told him. "He also thinks that I dress up in a green hood and shoot people with arrows."

"The important thing is not to say anything until your attorney gets here," Walter told him.

"Fine. I want Laurel." He said looking directly at me. I nodded as both his mother and step-father scoffed.

"Brilliant." Walter sighed.

"Oliver I don't think your ex-girlfriend can be counted on to be objective here." His mother told him.

"Other than our families, she knows Oliver better than anyone." I pointed out.

"She knows that I could never be this guy. Walter, you say Lance has a vendetta?" Oliver asked him.

"Yes." He answered.

"I think Laurel can get him off of it. He raised her to do the right thing. That includes representing an innocent man. So Mom. Please." Oliver practically begged.

"I'll talk to her if you'd like," I said. Moira nodded to me and at the end of our 15 minutes we left and I went to find Laurel at her office.

* * *

When I walked in I saw her looking through some files and I made a beeline straight to her.

"Laurel," I said to her. She turned to me shocked.

"Ashlee! What are you—" she started asking me.

"It's Oliver," I told her.

"I know. It's been all over the news." She said and we both turned to the TV to see Oliver getting escorted into the station and I sighed.

"These charges are ridiculous," I told her.

"I know. Can I ask you, who's representing him?" she asked me.

"That's why I'm here. He wants you to represent him." I told her.

"Me?" she asked me shocked.

"Yes. Moira told him it was a bad idea, but to be honest, you're the best and you already know him. He says if you don't represent him, then he doesn't want an attorney." I told her.

"Ash, my father is the arresting officer." She told me.

"Yes?" I asked her confused.

"And I don't think it's a good idea for me to represent someone who I've been involved with." She told me and I sighed. "Listen, I am sorry for what the Queen family and your own is going through—"

"No apologies needed Laurel," I told her. "The way you are, your ideals, is why Oliver is still in love with you," I told her and she smiled at me. "But you are right, this was a bad idea on his part, and I am sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable." I left her office with your thoughts.

* * *

"Docket 81941, People vs. Oliver Queen." A man said as we watched from the crowd as an officer brought in Oliver. "Murder, aggravated assault, assault with intent, menacing and trespassing."

"Where's your attorney, Mr. Queen?" the judge asked him.

"I'm representing myself, Judge." He told her shocking everyone.

"I'm not sure that's the wisest course, Mr. Queen." The judge told him.

"I think it is. I'm innocent." Oliver told him standing up.

"Then we'll consider that your plea." The judge told him.

"Thank you," Oliver said sitting down.

"Now, as to bail—" the judge started saying with the other attorney stood up.

"Your Honor, Mr. Queen's family owns a pair of private jets, and, well, on the subject of their wealth, I would point out that there is virtually no bail amount that can guarantee his presence at trial." She said.

"So then I guess it's a good thing that the people's case is so circumstantial." We all turned and watched Laurel make her way to Oliver. "Dinah Laurel Lance, Your Honor. I'd like to file my appearance on behalf of the defendant. Mr. Queen's wealth should not deprive him of the right to be released on bail while under the presumption of innocence."

"He is a flight risk." The other layer told her.

"Then minimize the risk. The defendant is willing to submit to home confinement and electronic monitoring through the wearing of a UKG45 administrated ankle device." Laurel said.

"No, he wouldn't," Oliver said.

"Sold." The judge said.

"Your Honor…" the other layer tried to say but the judge interrupted her.

"Bail is set at $15 million. $5 million bond. Defendant to see probation for the fitting of a GPS device." The judged said and I sighed in relief. Oliver would be home by dinner.

* * *

"Mom. It's not that bad." Oliver told her as we watched the officer put the GPS device on him.

"Ok. This device has a direct line into the precinct. Stay on the property, you're golden. Any questions?" he asked Oliver.

"Yes. I'm having a sizeable get together here tomorrow evening, and there is a better than likely chance it spills into the outdoor pool." Oliver told him.

"Pool deck's fine. Step on the grass, they're sending a SWAT team to forcibly subdue you." He told him as Tommy gave me a shocked look.

"Thank you, officer," Walter said escorting him out.

"A "sizeable get together"?" Moira asked Oliver.

"I'm confined to this house for the foreseeable future. I might as well make the most of it." Oliver told his mother before turning to Tommy and I. "And this party is going to be themed. I'm thinking prison, uh, burning man meets "Shawshank Redemption". The invite says, "come before Oliver Queen gets off."" Oliver told us.

"Maybe a party's not in the best of taste, you know, considering the circumstances," Tommy suggested sitting next to him.

"Tommy, the circumstances are why we're having the party in the first place. I want people to know that I'm not worried about any of this." Oliver told him.

"Well, that makes one of us." His mother told him.

"Are you sure you want to go through with this?" I asked him and he knew what I meant.

"Yes." He nodded and I sighed and nodded. "What details about the party do we have to deal with?"

* * *

I was sitting with Oliver in his room working on the list when there was a knock on his door.

"Yup?" Oliver called out and Diggle came in. "Thank you for coming. Shut the door." Diggle did as was asked and moved closer to Oliver and me.

"I guess it was just a matter of time before the police caught up with you," Diggle said.

"Except they didn't," Oliver told him.

"Oliver, they got you on video." Diggle pointed out.

"I knew the security camera was there, just like I knew the police would review the footage and arrest me. All part of the plan." Oliver explained.

"So you wanted to get arrested?" Diggle asked confused.

"Well, we returned to Starling City and a few days later, the vigilantes appear," Oliver told him.

"Sooner or later, somebody was going to make the connection," I told him. "I'm surprised they haven't tried to arrest me yet."

"So what part of serving yourself up to the cops will help you avoid going to prison for the rest of your life?" Diggle asked him.

"There's more to it," Oliver told him.

"Well, there better be, for your sake, because your family is freaking out downstairs. Oliver, your mother, and your sister just got you back, and now you're going to put them through a trial, maybe even worse? Don't you care?" Diggle asked him.

"Of course I care," Oliver told him. "The mission comes first." Oliver turned the laptop we were looking at to Diggle.

"Who is he?" Diggle asked.

"Leo Mueller. German arms dealer." Oliver told him.

"He's suspected in the theft of a hundred M249 Squad Automatic Weapons," I told him.

"Ok," Diggle said.

"Last night he arrived in Starling City to sell the guns," Oliver told him.

"Oliver, don't you imagine there's enough trouble you're in this week than to go after this guy?" Diggle asked.

"I imagine what would happen if a street gang got their hands on military-grade hardware. I imagine our city's streets turned into a war zone." Oliver told him.

"But you're under house arrest, Oliver, which means you can't just go after this guy," Diggle told him.

"Look, for now, I would just like you to shadow Mueller. I would like you to track his movements. I want to know where the buy is happening." Oliver told him.

"Ok. And how am I supposed to track him?" Diggle asked and I smiled at him.

"Well, you know us billionaire vigilantes- we do love our toys," Oliver told him.

"Come on Dig. I'll show you where you can find the tracking devices." I told him leaving with him following me.

* * *

We walked into the steel factory and down into our little hideout. I turned on the lights and he walked in amazed. He looked at the daggers and arrows and touched one of the arrowheads.

"Ow!" he said shaking his hand to try and get rid of the pain.

"What you need is over here," I told him. I pulled out the black sleek box and placed it on the table next to me.

"Oooh." He opened the case with a beep. Inside was four of the best tracking devices money could buy. He picked one up and some green lights appeared on it. "Oh, well, that's sweet."

* * *

We were pulled through a camp of men into a large tent where one of our captors shoved Ollie into a pole.

"Please, sit. You're making me feel rude." The man behind the table told us. Breathing heavily we sat down the opposite of him. "I do apologize for my men's treatment of you." He opened a can of soda and poured it over a cold glass of ice. "They're- they're trained to view any stranger as hostile. I'm Edward Fyers, by the way. And you are?" Oliver and I stared at the cold soda in want.

"I'm Oliver Queen and this is Ashlee Merlyn. We were shipwrecked here. I don't know for how long. Our families have money. They have lots of money you would be… You'd be really well compensated for our rescue." Oliver told him trying to get us home.

"Well, I look forward to that. But for the moment, let's just talk." Edward told us.

"About what?" I asked him.

"Well, for instance, this gentleman. Do you know him?" he asked us showing us a picture of the archer who'd been helping us.

"No." Ollie and I answered.

"No?" Edward asked us.

"No. Who's he?" Ollie asked him.

"You're a poor liar." He said dropping the photo on the table and leaning back, crossing his arms over his chest. "I've been polite. I'll offer you one more chance before my manners leave me."

"Hey, hey. We don't know this guy. We thought we were on this island all by ourselves." Ollie told him.

"Do you know what this island is named?" Edward asked us and we shook our heads at him. "We're on Lian Yu- Mandarin for "Purgatory", and I can make it feel like hell. I don't know why you're protecting him." He told us standing and taking the cold drink with him. "You're young, foolish. Perhaps you don't know why, either. Think on that when you're begging for death. They're yours now." We turned and watched him leave and another man walked in with a mask that was half black and half yellow.

* * *

"Hey, Speedy. One of the workers left a keg too far from the bar. Can you ask them to move it, please? I got the ankle… thingie. I don't want to set off a SWAT invasion." Oliver joked with his sister who was sitting on one of the chairs on the patio texting on her phone. "Hey! All this stuff? It's going to be fine, I promise." He told her sitting on the chair next to her while I leaned on the door jam.

"Yeah, well, when you and dad left on the yacht, you promised me I'd see you in a few days. Which didn't happen." She reminded him.

"This is different than that. I didn't do any of this stuff, you know that. Right?" he asked her.

"You're out all the time. You have those scars, and since you've been back, you've been acting really weird." She listed off.

"None of this makes me some Robin Hood wannabe." He told her.

"And you get me this. I mean, it's an arrowhead." She said showing him the stone he'd given her when we got back.

"Oh, man." He sighed. "Thea, I bought that in the gift shop of the Beijing airport. "Now I'm sort of happy I didn't buy you the shot glass with the panda on it, 'cause then you'd be worried I was panda man." He joked and she chuckled with him.

"You know, I knew you couldn't be this person. I-I just- I can't lose you again." She told him and I looked down to the ground.

"Deal." He told her. He smiled at her before getting up and coming to me. "Where are we on the armed dealer?"

"Dig and I planted the tracker," I told him handing him a scanner for it.

"What are you going to do if the police start to suspect you?" he asked me and I smiled up at him.

"Don't worry. I got someone who owes me a very big favor." I told him. "Besides, I wouldn't miss your party for the world."

"Where can I find the man in this picture?" Edward asked us with the second man standing behind him. Ollie and I had been tied with our arms above our heads on two separate poles in the center of the tent. We didn't answer, which seemed to piss Edward off more. He nodded to the man behind him and he turned towards me which made me start to breathe quicker.

"No!" Ollie screamed out as the man drug his sword across the front of my body causing me to scream wordlessly. He stuck the blade into my side making me scream more as Ollie tried to escape his binds. He stopped and Edward turned to me asking me the same question. I shook my head at him and his man began his torture on Ollie. This continued for hours, him asking us the same question over and over while his man sliced into our bodies when we didn't answer until we finally passed out from the pain.

* * *

At Oliver's party, dance music was playing loudly as girls danced in a cage and people danced and mingled around. I wore a long-sleeved dress that came to mid-thigh with the black and white stripes running down it. Black hose and pumps completed the outfit. I noticed Oliver moving to a table so he could be seen and heard by everyone.

"Hi, everybody!" he greeted them.

"Hey!" everyone called out.

"I'm very touched that you came to celebrate with me before I am sent up the river. Closest neighbors are six miles away, so don't worry about the noise. Actually, on second thought… Let's wake those losers up!" Oliver called out and everyone cheered before the music was turned back on. Oliver jumped down and made his way to me as Dig joined me.

"If you think this is what prison's like, you are in for a rude awakening," Diggle told him making me laugh.

* * *

We looked at a scanner the tracking device was connected too to see where our arms dealer was.

"Mueller's car has been parked in the warehouse district of the Glades for 45 minutes," Oliver said and Dig took the scanner from him.

"Yeah, that's a good place for an arms deal. Ok, since this is going down tonight, what do we do, drop a dime on Mueller with the cops?" he asked us.

"No, the man in the Hood and the Masked Woman. They're going to stop them." Oliver told him.

"Oliver, you can't leave the house." Dig pointed out.

"It doesn't have to be me in the hood," Oliver told him.

"And I don't have to be in the mask," I told him smiling making Dig chuckle.

"That's why you threw this ridiculous party? So you have a hundred witnesses placing you here at the house while I'm supposed to be across town dressed as a vigilante with a mystery woman at my side?" he asked us.

"I thought that it was going to be good enough just for you to be seen in the hood. I didn't count on Mueller showing up and I didn't count on the possibility that the Glades could be flooded with machine guns." Oliver told him.

"Look. It was never our intention to put you in harm's way." I told him.

"Oliver, Ashlee, I didn't think joining your crusade was ever going to be risk-free. I just don't like being played. Now you might have gotten used to lying to everyone else in your life, but I'm the one guy you don't lie to." He told us.

"You're right. I'm sorry. So am I going to jail?" Oliver asked him. Dig looked at the two of us and sighed.

"No, man. I got to stop an arms deal." He said before leaving the room. Oliver and I went back down to join the party and tried to have a good time and relax a little. He and I were walking into the foyer when Laurel walked into the house.

"Do we have a legal meeting or something? Because I have friends over." He told her.

"Do you think maybe you can tear yourself away from this inappropriately themed rave for a couple minutes?" she asked him.

"You two go talk. I'll hold down the fort." I told him before watching them go upstairs. I grabbed a shot and downed it quickly. I soon watched Laurel race down the stairs and made my way up to Oliver. I knocked on his door and waited for a moment before he told me I could come in.

"You okay?" I asked him.

"I'm fine." He told me.

"I saw Laurel running downstairs. Did you two fight again?" I asked him.

"She kissed me." He told me and sat listening to him. "I pushed her away."

"Maybe it's for the best," I told him. "She doesn't belong where we are, but when this is over you can be with her." He opened his mouth to say something but the phone began to go off.

"Man in the hood and masked woman, one, gangbangers, zero." He told us as we heard a knock on the door.

"Hang on. Yeah?" Oliver called out.

"Mr. Queen, if you're entertaining guests upstairs, should I have some drinks sent up?" a man asked.

"No. We're on our way back down." He told him before going back to his phone. "Good job. Now get back here." Oliver hung up the phone as he opened the door only to see a man with a gun pointed at his head. Oliver acted quickly and grabbed his gun and punched the man a few times before forcing him to drop the gun. Oliver kneed the man in the knee making him drop and almost grabbing the gun he'd dropped. I quickly picked it up before pointing it at him as Oliver pulled him away from me and the gun. The assassin rolled Oliver over the couch before jumping over it to attack him again. Oliver quickly moved out of the way and used his legs to knock him on his back again. The man ran at me and I aimed the gun quickly but he was shot three times before falling to the ground. I turned and saw Detective Lance come in pointing his gun around the room. We all shared a look with each other.

* * *

We soon canceled the party and sat in the living room with Thea.

"How did you know we were in trouble?" Oliver asked Detective Lance.

"Because when the guy was fighting you, he broke the ankle monitor." He told Oliver.

"Are you all right?!" Moira asked as she and Walter made their way to us.

"We're fine," Oliver told her as she looked us over.

"Oliver…" she started saying.

"Mom. I promise." He told her.

"This is on you." She told Detective Lance. "By accusing my son publicly, you've made him a target. Do you have any idea who attacked Oliver?"

"We haven't identified him. Though it must be someone with a grudge against the Hood, obviously." Detective Lance told us before kneeling down and starting to take off Oliver's anklet.

"What are you doing?" Oliver asked him feigning confusion.

"I got a call from my lieutenant. An arms dealer was attacked across town tonight. By the vigilante. Multiple witnesses put him there. In light of that, all charges against your son are being dropped." He told us.

"I'm truly sorry for what's happened to your family, Quentin. But would you kindly get the hell out of my house?" Moira asked him. He looked at all of us before turning to leave.

"Mr. Lance…" Oliver called to him. "Thank you." He nodded before leaving.

* * *

Ollie and I groaned as the archer dropped us to the ground in the cave we'd been hiding in.

"I tell you, island dangerous, but you not tell them where to find me. You stronger than I thought. Take it." He told Ollie giving him a bag. "I lead them off, you stay. Breathe. You breathe, you survive here longer." He told us going to the entrance.

"No! I'm coming with you!" Ollie called to him getting up and going for the entrance only for us to be blocked by rocks.

* * *

"Hey, sweetie." I turned to see my dad in the doorway to my room. "Rough party last night?" he asked.

"Oliver and I were attacked by someone. Detective Lance saved us." I told him.

"Are you ok?" he asked me.

"Yeah, I'm fine," I answered smiling at him.

"I heard Oliver was cleared of all charges." He told me and I nodded.

"Yea." I nodded. "I'm actually going to meet him now. See you at dinner?"

"Of course. Have a good day." He told me offering me a smile. We hugged as we crossed paths before I met Oliver at the Steel Factory.

* * *

"So you lied to her," Dig said after Oliver told us what happened between him and Laurel. "Or maybe you just gave her a version of the truth."

"I told her what she needed to hear, Diggle. She was too close." Oliver told him.

"Sad thing is, I think you actually believe that. I think things didn't go down exactly how you planned. You didn't count on so many people having questions, doubting you. You didn't think about what happens when you lie." Dig said. "Especially when you lie to the ones you love the most. When you were stuck on that island plotting your grand plan to save the city, I don't think you stopped to consider the effect it would have on the people in your life. Or how it might hurt them."

"You're wrong. I think about it all the time." Oliver told him.

"And just to be clear, not being able to tell our families the truth It doesn't hurt anyone worse than it hurts us." I told him.

"Where are you going?" Dig asked us.

"Mueller still has to sell those guns and we have to stop him." Oliver told him.

"Oliver…"

"He had his chance, Dig. Now it's time to show him the consequences of his choices." I told him.

Later we were at the new meet site watching as they started making their deal.

"28 crates, four guns in each crate, $250,000 cash. Take it or leave it. That's the deal." We dropped down from the rafters and separated quickly taking out the men with guns trying to shot us.

"Leo Mueller, you have failed this city."


End file.
